Who I am
by Khalthar
Summary: A six year old girl sees her parents killed by a viscious gang. She is then saved by a Yautja Warrior, who she follows back to his ship. Once there, she must learn to adapt to their way of life and live as one of them. When she finally goes back to Earth, will she choose to stay or not? Her choice is who she is.
1. Chapter 1

Who I am...

As Amanda walked down the street holding her mother's hand, she paid no attention to anything as she happily recounted the highlights of the grand spectacle she'd just seen earlier that night. The opening night of Disney on Ice couldn't _possibly_ have been any more exciting for her. So what, if it was two days after her sixth birthday? Daddy had given her the tickets he'd won from the radio station when it _was_ her birthday, and he'd even told her what they were for. Now, after finally seeing it, _nothing_ could ruin her spirits, not even their old car breaking down as they were trying to leave. Okay so they had a long walk home, it gave her the perfect opportunity to tell her parents all of her very favorite parts all over again.

Rebecca smiled nervously at her daughter's antics. While she was truly happy about the fact that her daughter had thoroughly enjoyed the show, she was more than a little scared by the fact that that they would now have to walk through one of the worst sections of downtown. She silently cursed the horrible luck that caused their car to break down when it did. Realistically, she knew that it was only her brother in law's skill as a mechanic and a lot of prayers that had kept the old car running for the past three years. Now, it had left them stranded almost twenty blocks from home. She was truly glad that her husband Steven was with them.

Rebecca looked down at the girl, who was still chattering ecstatically about the show she'd seen just an hour earlier. Long wavy red hair that was held in a single blue ribbon and reached down to the middle of her daughter's back moved with every turn of the girl's head, and bright green eyes danced happily in a small angular face that surprisingly enough, held no freckles at all. At six years old, Amanda was a mirror image of both her mother and her aunt Rachel. Both Rebecca and Rachel were identical twins, with Amanda looking exactly like them except that she was a much younger version; the trio would get some _very_ strange looks when they went somewhere together.

She heard Steven release another sigh of frustration. She knew he was thoroughly disgusted by the car breaking down, but there wasn't anything they could do about it. With well over a half a million miles on it, the '76 Lincoln was just too far past its time. Rebecca was just glad that Amanda simply saw this as one more part of a grand night of celebration for her birthday. After all, it was a nice night with a full moon shining brightly in the dark velvet sky, the street lights all seemed to be working, and their way was well lit. Under the circumstances, about the only thing she could have wished for was that she had worn some shoes that wouldn't kill her feet and leave horrible blisters before the walk home was over.

An hour after they had started walking, Rebecca rolled her eyes as her daughter began retelling one of her many favorite parts for what had to be the thirtieth time. She just couldn't believe how big an impression that one show had made on the girl. Amanda was now swearing up and down that she wanted to be an ice skater. Skipping, twirling, dancing, and laughing merrily, the girl was simply too thrilled for words at what she'd been treated to. Granted they never would have been able to afford tickets for the opening night of the show, let alone the front row seats that Steven had miraculously won, but given Amanda's reaction to it all, she couldn't have been happier. She resigned herself to hearing about this night for the next several months because truth be told; the show really had been that good.

As they passed East 12th street, Rebecca let out her own sigh of frustration. Not quite halfway home, and her feet were already killing her. She knew that blisters had already formed and that one or two had even burst, but there was no way that she could remove her heeled shoes and walk barefoot the rest of the way. If she did, there would be no way she would be able to make it home. She would just have to deal with sore aching feet for the rest of the week, although she was positive that her feet would most likely be bleeding by the time they got home.

Hearing her sigh, Steven looked over at his wife of eight years. At thirty years old, she was still as beautiful as she'd been the day they'd met. Never once had he questioned the miracle that had blessed him with such a gorgeous and loving wife. That blessing had only been enhanced exponentially by the birth of a wonderful and lovely daughter. The two of them had become the entire world to him, and there was nothing he wouldn't do for either of them. The incredibly happy chatter that bubbled cheerfully from his daughter made his heart swell with pride over the fact that he'd been able to bring it about by winning those tickets. Even though he wasn't a religious man, the wonderfully brilliant smile on his daughter's face made him ready to thank God that he'd been able to give her a night like tonight. He felt a sudden pang of guilt as he glanced down at his wife's shoes and realized that her feet had to be hurting. Out of concern for her, he slowed his pace just a touch. So it would take them a little longer to get home, at least she might not be totally miserable for the next few days.

A gasp from Rebecca caught his attention and he looked back up to see what had caused it, only to find himself looking down the barrel of a pistol. A quick but observant glance spotted six somewhat shabbily dressed men in their late teens or early twenties surrounding them.

"Look Guys, whatever you're after; we don't have it. I... I'm just a P.E. coach for an elementary school, I don't make much." Steven told them sincerely.

"Shut the fuck up and get n the alley bitch! You don' know _what_ we want!" The man brandishing the pistol said in a snarl.

As they moved into the alley, Steven pulled out his wallet, took his wife's purse, and held them out to the men. "Here, look. Take 'em, okay? Just let us go. We don't honestly have anything else. Even our damned car broke down on us." Steven exclaimed truthfully.

The lead thug made a snarling face as he smashed the butt of his pistol into the man's temple with every ounce of strength he had. The satisfying impact was accompanied by the sickening crunch of bone as the man slumped to the pavement with blood gushing from the side of his head. Rebecca screamed in shock as she saw her husband go down. She didn't even think as she automatically tried to see about the horrific injury he'd just gotten.

"Oh my God! _You Killed him!_" Rebecca screamed as she lunged towards her husband.

Upon hearing the scream, and certain that the broad was right and he'd actually killed the bastard he was trying to rob, his hand tightened on the pistol causing it to go off. To his total disbelief, the sound was covered by the loud backfire of a passing truck. If the pistol hadn't jumped in his hand, or if the woman's head hadn't literally been blown apart, he would never have known the gun had fired. Several seconds passed, and he realized that the girl was the only one left alive. A smirking sneer crossed his face as he also realized that there was nothing she could do to stop them, and that she couldn't be left alive to tell about it either.

"Yo, homies! Looks like dis lil bitch gone have ta be a piece o ass afore we cap her!" He told the five men who were with him as he put up the pistol, and pulled a knife.

"Yo G! She gonna be just as dead as her parents!" Another added with a laugh.

He watched and laughed sadistically as his friends grabbed the young girl and held her against the wall. Then he began cutting away her clothes. He took his time while slicing the kid's clothes and shoes. He laughed while making each cut in her clothes, every slice in her underwear. He didn't care at all that he occasionally nicked the girl while doing this, or that she was trying to scream in frantic terror. That only made this that much more fun. Taking true delight in every choked, fear filled sob that accompanied the terrified expression on the girl's face. He intended to prove that his gang could be even more vicious than the Crips or Bloods, and doing this would prove exactly that.

Bright yellow eyes watched from behind a battle mask of durable alloy as the oomans bantered with each other. He'd seen the group take down the two other oomans, and the sight of the dead breeder made his blood burn. Now he watched in a near senseless rage as the group obviously intended to dispatch a mere pup just as callously as they had the parents. It wasn't until he saw one of the male oomans baring himself in front of the breeder pup that he realized exactly what their immediate intentions were. His mandibles flared in stark disbelief that even an ooman bad blood could stoop so low as to do such an _incredibly_ dishonorable and cowardly thing. A soft growl filled with deadly intent left his mouth as he dropped silently behind the group.

Amanda tried to shake her head, which was being held so that she was forced to watch as the stranger, that she was now sure was a boogeyman, in front of her pulled out his _thing_, and came closer to her. She knew her mommy and daddy were dead, and that they couldn't help her. She couldn't kick, hit, or even scream because of the way she was being held by the boogeymen, and she couldn't help but wonder what she had done to make them be so mean. She couldn't say what it was that made her look away from the man's _thing_ up to his stomach, but when she did, she stared in total confusion at the two metal things that popped out of it. Then the stranger, who had promised to use his _thing_ to rip her open, was lifted up into the air and flung to the side.

The scent of pure terror emerging from the pup, only served to increase his determination to eliminate the ooman bad bloods. Impaling the pup's immediate threat on his wrist blades, he lifted the ooman two feet off the ground and flung him to the right to be rid of the disgusting waste. Then, he extended his blades a second time and turned to face the three males to his left. Three feet of electromagnetically charged alloy with a molecular edge slashed downward from an overhand strike, slicing his second kill into three pieces from left shoulder to right hip. He immediately spun in a three quarter circle to behead the nearest male to his right.

He retracted his wrist blades, because he wanted to kill the three remaining males with his bare hands. Then he realized that these bad blood oomans did not deserve the honor of being killed in such a fashion. He grabbed the smart disk from its appointed position on his belt and hurled it forward to slice the heads of the two men to his right completely in half. Beneath his mask, his mandibles flared in delight as the obviously worthless and unused brains of the bad blood oomans spilled on the ground.

Letting go of the naked girl and allowing her to fall to the ground, he chose to run while he could. He didn't know what had killed all of his homies, but _whatever_ it was, was not only invisible, but it was also a lot more than he was willing to face alone. He'd taken two steps in the direction of safety when something struck him in the back hard enough to force him to the ground. Not yet dead, but definitely dying, he stared at the body of the woman his leader had killed when the growl from some kind of animal made him turn his head to look up over his left shoulder.

Arcs of blue electrical energy flashed over a form that just _had_ to be more than seven feet tall. Skin like he'd never seen before was encased in some kind of weird netting, and thick muscular arms ended in clawed fingers that could rip what little life was left right out of his body. The sight of an unearthly alien mask filled his dimming vision as a massive jolt of pain erupted from his back when the creature removed some kind of strange spear. Without even being able to ask why, he drew a last shuddering breath and died.

Amanda stared at the huge thing that had suddenly shimmered before it appeared out of nowhere. She knew that it had been the one who killed the strangers and boogeymen. It looked like a monster right out of the kind of movies that her parents didn't like her to watch. But it couldn't be a monster if it had saved her could it? Tears of pain and grief streamed down her face as she looked over at the lifeless bodies of her parents. They were dead, and they couldn't help her now. She didn't have any clothes, so she couldn't go out to try to find a policeman either. She saw the monster thing tilt its head to one side, as it seemed to look at her for a second, then it just turned and started to walk away. Terrified that she would now be left alone in the world with no one to help her get home or anything, Amanda jumped up and ran to the monster. Being with the thing that had saved her was a lot better than being left all alone, especially when she didn't even know where her home was.

Pure reflex nearly made him impale the pup with the wrist blades mounted in his right gauntlet as the little ooman grabbed his left leg in a tight embrace and wrapped herself around it. Only the recognition that it was the ooman pup he'd rescued, had stayed a deathblow from landing. He cocked his head in confusion at the flow of strange sounds that emerged from the pup. They were sounds that he knew to be the ooman language, but it wasn't a tongue he understood. It had been an almost instinctive hatred for _all_ bad bloods that had made him kill the oomans to begin with, but now, he wondered what he was supposed to do about the pup. He knew that there was no way the tiny thing could survive in this area, because he'd already dealt with many bad bloods among the oomans. Then he came to a decision, if the pup was strong enough, and smart enough to follow him to his ship, then he would speak to the ship's Elder about her, if not, then she would no longer be his concern. He reached down and carefully unwrapped her arms from around his leg, patted the pup lightly on the head and began to walk away. He made sure to stay hidden, but didn't cloak, since he knew that would make the test impossible for the pup.


	2. Chapter 2

Who I am 2

Amanda's lips quivered with renewed fear as the monster turned and started to leave. That was when she realized that she could see where he was, even when he was hiding, but only if she looked close. With a choked cry of relief, she started following him through the alleys. She cried with every stubbed toe, and each cut that she got on the bottoms of her now bare feet. She sobbed a little harder each time she tripped and scraped her knees, and each time she struggled back to her hurting feet to follow the Shimmer Monster. The boogeymen had taken everything off of her when they cut up her clothes with their knife. She didn't dare stop to let her feet quit hurting because the one she was following didn't stop. Her mommy and daddy were dead, and the Shimmer Monster was all that was left. She didn't care if it was a stranger, since she didn't know anyone else in the city, which meant that everyone was now a stranger to her, and that included the policemen. She remembered her mommy warning her about strangers that would try to steal her and hurt her, but that policemen would help her, but the policemen hadn't helped her, this Shimmer Monster had, and she did her best to stay up with him no matter how much her feet hurt. Maybe when he got where he was going, she could try to make her feet stop hurting so much.

Beneath his battle mask, his mandibles clicked in approval. In spite of the traumatic event earlier, and the numerous injuries received from tripping and falling, the pup was still determinedly following him. After more than an hour, he knew that the ooman pup had to be tired, more, she was probably cold, hurting, and hungry as well, but as harsh as it seemed, he stuck to his decision. He had slowed his pace however, and though he was using his skills to remain fairly well hidden, he didn't cloak, and didn't take to the tops of the structures that surrounded them since that would have made the test impossible to pass. Whatever this pup's past life had been, he knew that it would change beyond recognition if she somehow managed to follow him the rest of the way to the waiting ship.

She was scared, cold, hungry, tired, her legs were not only tired but also sore from walking so long, and her feet, when she glanced down at them were dirty and bleeding from the number of times she'd hurt them. She didn't dare take her eyes off of the Shimmer Monster for long for fear that it would turn invisible or disappear completely and she'd never find it again. It wasn't until her tired legs tripped her and she looked up from her fallen position to see the Shimmer Monster gone that she started crying in earnest. She didn't know where she was, how to get home, or who would help her. She didn't even know where to go to get warm and sleep, and now she'd lost the Shimmer Monster that had saved her. All alone, the terror she had felt earlier began grip her once more.

He'd heard the pup fall, and had kept going for a few strides, but when he heard the soft cries that emerged from the ooman pup, he stopped and turned around. Then he stepped out of concealment. He stood there waiting as the pup stared in what he thought was disbelief. He moved his right foot back a half step and placed it on the still cloaked entry ramp to the ship belonging to his clan. He raised his left hand and beckoned the pup to come forward. Whatever ailments she had, and whatever problems she represented, her future would now be turned over to the ship's Elder. He watched in amused silence as the pup scrambled to feet that obviously hurt and hurried over to once again wrap small arms around his leg. He unwrapped the pup's arms, patted it on the head approvingly, and hit a control to deactivate the ship's cloak for a brief moment, so they could enter.

When the Shimmer Monster turned to go into the huge thing that appeared the same way it had the first time, Amanda reached over her head and grabbed a hold of the Shimmer Monster's hand. She held on tightly, because she didn't want to be left alone. Not never, ever again. When she thought that she'd lost the Shimmer Monster, she had gotten scared as she wondered who would stop the boogeymen from coming back. She tried to stop crying now that she was with the Shimmer Monster again, but it wasn't easy. She knew that her mommy and daddy didn't like her to cry, and she was sure that this Shimmer Monster wouldn't like it either. She heard the Shimmer Monster make a bunch of clicking, and growling sounds as it led her up into a place that was almost as dark as the nighttime trees around her. The Shimmer Monster led her through some turns and even what she thought was an elevator, but she wasn't sure because everything was so dark. She knew that her mommy had gotten her a nightlight because she was afraid of the dark, but this Shimmer Monster didn't seem to be bothered by it at all. She couldn't see a whole lot of anything, except the Shimmer Monster that she was holding on to, but she was sure that it could since they didn't bump into anything. One really good thing that she liked though was that it wasn't cold in here at all; in fact, it was nice and very warm.

As he led the ooman pup in to the Hall of Glory which held the trophies that had been earned by the crew as a whole, he issued an order for most of the off duty crew to be assembled. As a young, but Blooded and honorable hunter, it was his right and privilege to issue minor commands that did not affect the function of the ship as a whole. He waited in silence as the crew began to assemble around them. He knew that the presence of the ooman pup would cause problems, but his only consolation was that this ship belonged to his own clan, and wasn't filled with those attempting their first hunt. When all of his clan members who were present had uncloaked and could be seen by the pup, he bowed his head in respect and spoke.

"_I request to speak to the ship's Elder regarding the ooman pup."_ Chakak said quietly.

His request was granted when an aging hunter entered, and stared silently through his mask at the two of them.

"_This pup has followed me here as a test Elder. I stayed mostly hidden at the time. Its bearer was killed by six ooman bad bloods who then stripped the pup and were going to breed with her by force before dishonorably killing her."_ He stated bluntly.

Growls and snarls of outrage filled the chamber as each of the hunters present instantly tensed with rage. Females were the true leaders of the clans. They were to be honored and obeyed, not callously killed, and pups were _never_ to be used in such a way! In fact, both honor, and law demanded that no pup of any kind except for the Kainde Amedha were ever to be harmed.

"_Were there no other oomans to give the pup to?"_ The Elder demanded irritably.

"_No, Elder. That area is rife with ooman bad bloods. The breeder's unarmed mate was killed by them as well."_ Chakak replied.

"_You say the pup followed you while you were hidden. How?"_ One of his clan brothers demanded suspiciously.

"_I moved slowly enough that I could be detected by careful observation. I did it as a form of test for the pup. It was all I could think of."_ Chakak admitted wryly.

The ship's Elder exhaled angrily. Having been rescued from bad bloods could make the pup the clan's responsibility. This was _not_ a decision he wanted to be responsible for, then an idea struck him, _two_ of them actually.

"_Kneel in front of her and show the pup your face! All Yautja know that the oomans fear our true faces; this includes their pups. If the pup truly wishes to remain with us then it will show no fear. If the pup shows no fear at the sight of your face, then she may remain with the ship until the Clan Matriarch decides her fate."_ The Elder commanded.

"_I obey, Elder! We shall see if the pup is truly worthy. If you would have this as a test, Elder, then let it be hoped that it is a true test!"_ Chakak replied instantly.

Amanda looked up at the huge hand she held and saw that the skin was a yellow with a bit of green in it and had lots of small black spots. It was almost like some sort of froggy, except that there were big black claw looking fingernails on the ends of each finger. She watched as the Shimmer Monster that had saved her, kneeled down in front of her and pulled a pair of tube things out of its mask with a hiss of what looked like steam. Then, it let go of her hand, and reached up and slowly pulled the mask away from its face.

As the Shimmer Monster pulled the metal mask down and away from its face, Amanda saw the strange alien features for the first time. A large forehead swept back from deep set yellow eyes that were the same color as her neighbor's cat. There were small and very short spiky ridge looking things around the top of the Shimmer Monster's head. There wasn't any kind of a nose, but there was the strange and frightening looking mouth. There were four sharp looking tooth things that were where its mouth was supposed to be. Those weird looking tooth things were all moving just a little.

The ooman pup stared up at him in silence while looking into his eyes. Whatever else the hunter might say about her, he had to give the pup credit where it was due. Where most oomans were terrified by the sight of a hunters face, this pup only reached up with the same hand that had held onto his, and tried to touch his face. Pure curiosity prompted him to lean down and see what would happen when the pup did manage to touch him. A single small finger touched his bottom left mandible and he flared them in mild surprise at the pup's actions.

Amanda's eyes went wide and her mouth fell open when she saw the Shimmer Monster make those weird tooth things stick straight out and showed her another mouth behind them. She wasn't frightened by the sight because she had known from the beginning that it was a monster that had saved her. It was only that one single fact that kept her from being deathly afraid of the Shimmer Monster. It _had_ saved her! It had gotten there too late to help her mommy and daddy, but it had saved _her_! She looked at the yellow eyes that stared at her before she lunged forward and gave the huge Shimmer Monster a hug. She didn't know how to thank the Shimmer Monster for saving her, but if she _had_ known, she would have. Over and over, she was so scared because her mommy and daddy were dead, and all she had now was this Shimmer Monster, and she just _knew_ that it could protect her!

Throughout the chamber, mandibles flared in pure disbelief as the ooman pup _hugged_ the hunter that had just revealed a visage that was supposed to be terrifying to oomans! This wasn't supposed to happen this way, oomans were supposed to be afraid of them! Witnessing such a complete lack of fear in the pup, made the Elder curious to know exactly what had transpired. He stepped forward quickly, removed his own battle mask, and faced the pup.

"_Give me your mask! I would see for myself what occurred!"_ The Elder demanded bluntly.

Amanda watched as the Shimmer Monster she was holding onto, used his right hand to pass his mask over his right shoulder. Looking up where that mask was going she saw the face of another Shimmer Monster. That was when she realized that she was on some kind of space ship and these Shimmer Monsters had to be from outer space! She had really been saved by an alien! Then the one that took the mask of her Shimmer Monster started growling and making lots of clicking noises. She didn't know what it meant, but she had heard some of those sounds from the one who'd saved her.

Ta Khan viewed the recording at just above normal speed. As he did, he couldn't stop himself from snarling in angry disgust at the actions of the ooman bad bloods. When the recording finished he turned to Chakak in curiosity. _"Why did you not claim a trophy from one of them?"_ He asked finally.

"_Elder, I would not dishonor myself, this ship, or my clan, by claiming such a tainted and worthless prize from a kill that had nothing of honor!"_ Chakak responded without hesitation.

Ta Khan merely grunted in acknowledgement as he replaced his own mask. Then he turned his attention to the ooman pup. He squatted down so it could see him better, and spoke to it in what he was sure was its own language.

"You know your... family is dead?" Ta Khan asked carefully, wondering if the pup knew enough of its own tongue to understand him. When the pup nodded and fluid started running down its face. Ta Khan grunted to keep its attention. "You will stay with us now. When we reach our home, our clan... our _family_ leader, will decide if you are to become a part of our clan or family."

"Until the time that this ship returns back to our world, you should start learning what it means to be Yautja. To be accepted as one of us, you must learn to _be_ one of us! Do you understand?" Ta Khan said as he searched the ooman pup's face for some sign of comprehension.

He could see the muscles in the pup's throat work as it... no... _She_ swallowed before nodding her head. Whether the swallowing was from nervousness, or apprehension, he couldn't tell, but her scent contained no hint of fresh fear, which was more than a little surprising to the experienced hunter.

"This ship and all those aboard belong to the Black Mountain Clan! Each one aboard this ship is a true hunter, blooded, and tested in battle. The only exception here is you. If you are strong, if you are worthy, then perhaps that can one day change. You are a pup! You are not only young, but you are Unblooded, and weak! You do not know the ways of the hunt! You do not know the ways of battle! Those are things you must change if you wish to become one of us, and live among us as one of our honored Clan."

Amanda had listened carefully to what the Shimmer Monster was telling her. Understanding blossomed within her young mind, like the sun bursting through the clouds, and she realized that _all_ of these Shimmer Monsters were family to the one that had saved her. Then her mouth fell open in surprise when she understood that she might become a part of that family, but then there was that final warning. She was weak, and she would need to learn to be strong. She remembered her daddy teaching her a little bit about what it meant to be strong. He'd told her that you didn't cry if you were strong, but then her mommy told her that only boys were like that. Her mommy had said that her daddy had meant 'tough' instead of strong. Being tough meant that even when you got a shot from a really big and scary needle at the doctor's, that you didn't scream even if it hurt bad enough to make you cry really hard.

Two sets of mandibles clicked in amusement when the hunters kneeling down next to the ooman pup saw an expression of what had to be determination cross that small face before the pup nodded her head.


	3. Chapter 3

Who I am 3

"_Ne'Tahl! Take this pup to the infirmary, and treat her. For now, until the Honored Matriarch commands otherwise she is to be considered a clan pup, and she is to be treated as such."_ Ta Kahn ordered suddenly.

"_As you say Ship's Elder."_ Ne'Tahl replied as she stepped forward to escort the ooman pup to the infirmary.

Amanda's eyes shot wide in stunned awe at the sight of the Shimmer Monster that had just walked up to them. The one who had saved her was a lot bigger than her daddy, and the one who talked to her was even bigger than the first one, but _this_ one was _really ginormous_! She knew right away that it was a Lady Shimmer Monster because of the boobies on her chest. Only ladies had those, and she was sure of that because her mommy had told her about things like that one time.

"This is Ne'Tahl; she will take you to... a room to heal your feet. Go with her."

Ta Khan told the pup.

Amanda stepped away from the Shimmer Monster who'd saved her, and looked up at Ne'Tahl. She was positively _huge_! She had to be almost twice as tall as her mommy had been, _and_ she was going to do something about her feet too! She breathed a heartfelt sigh of relief, reached up to take the Shimmer Monster's hand, and gaped when she realized that she couldn't reach it, because Ne'Tahl was just way too tall!

Ne'Tahl looked down at the pup that was stretching its arm up in an attempt to grasp her hand, and bared her sharp teeth in a grin. It was such a typical and familiar behavior for a pup that she couldn't help but smile. She knew that pups who were too young to begin their training relied on adult members of the clan for both guidance and protection, but she honestly hadn't expected such behavior from an ooman pup. It was both comforting and disturbing at the same time since it indicated too many possible similarities between the two species. She leaned down from her height of nine and a half nok tall and picked the ooman up to carry the pup in her arms. The various visual modes of her battle mask had clearly shown her the pup's injuries, and her filthy condition. Scraped hands, knees, along with numerous cuts and scrapes on the bottom of the pup's filthy feet. She couldn't help but notice the dirt that was streaked down the front of the pup's body from a fall or two. It wasn't until the pup was safely in her arms that she realized the pup was entirely without clothing. She growled in anger at how a mere pup had been forced to stand completely exposed to the gaze of males.

"_Gre'Cham, the pup will be in dire need your skills to make her some clothing, since it is obvious that she has none what so ever!"_ Ne'Tahl growled in a dangerously disapproving tone as she glared at the Ship's Elder from beneath her mask.

The other three female Yautja in the room once more growled in mounting anger. Whatever the Clan Matriarch's decision turned out to be, it would come later, for now, this pup was to be considered a member of their clan, and honor demanded that she be shown the same respect due any other female pup. Respect that had _yet_ to be shown!

"_She could not wear the shredded remains of the clothes that were cut from her body as the ooman bad bloods prepared her for a forced breeding."_ Chakak stated evenly as he bowed his head to avoid provoking the already angry females.

Echoes of enraged growls and snarls reverberated throughout the Hall of Glory as those who hadn't been able to get a look at the pup now realized a fair sized extent of why she was now among them. Females and males both roared in their rage because they were helpless to vent it upon those who truly deserved it. Trembling from the effects of the hot murderous rage that flowed through her veins, Ne'Tahl turned and left the chamber to head to the infirmary. She was immediately followed by the other three females who had been in the room with her.

Amanda had clapped her hands over her ears when all of the Shimmer Monsters started getting _really_ loud. If she didn't know that they were going to protect her, she would have been crying for her mommy and daddy. Then, before she could try to understand what was going on, the Shimmer Monster who was carrying her turned and started walking somewhere. She looked around curiously, as she was carried through some halls and into a room, with some huge metal tables. The Shimmer Monster who was carrying her stopped and set her down on one of the tables, and started looking at her feet. Even though she couldn't see the eyes because of the weird metal mask, she knew that the lady Shimmer Monster... lady monster... _Lady_ was looking at her feet because she was turning her ankles to see them better.

Kre'Gel looked down at the pup that her clan sister had placed on the medical table for treatment. She grunted in disbelief at how small and thin the pup was. Food and proper exercise were going to be priorities for this one if she had anything to say about it, but there were other matters that should be attended to first.

"_Thank Lilka Chakak acted when he did! The only good thing about her condition is that she was never actually forced."_ Ne'Tahl said in relief.

"_I still can't believe that she doesn't fear us!"_ Kre'Gel said irritably.

"_It makes me wonder what those other oomans did to her that would make her unafraid of us."_ Ne'Tahl wondered aloud.

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she and the others froze as unwanted and unwelcome visions flashed through their minds.

"_Whatever they did, or wanted to do, they are of no further concern. We should see about caring for this pup now, and what she needs first, is a bath. C'jit is she ever smelly!"_ Gre'Cham stated firmly.

Ne'Tahl nodded her head in full agreement as she took the ooman pup in her arms and headed to the bathing room adjacent to the infirmary. The dim lighting activated upon her entrance and she knew that she was being followed by two other females. Her quick examination of the ooman pup showed her that it wasn't much taller than her knee. From the small size, she guessed that the pup was no more than twelve or perhaps fifteen years old.

'_Not even old enough to begin proper training.'_ She thought disgustedly as she set the pup down to begin removing her own armor and clothing to enter the bath.

Amanda stared around her after her eyes had gradually adjusted to the near darkness around her. After looking at her feet, the lady had picked her up, brought her here, and put her on the floor. She looked up at the lady, about to ask a question when she saw that the lady was taking off her clothes, and those strange metal things. Looking around more showed her that both of the other ladies were doing the same thing. As soon as they were done, the lady that was carrying her picked her up and took her into a big swimming pool. Amanda frowned at the idea of swimming. It was one of the few things she was good at, but never got to do often. She didn't feel like swimming right now. She really wanted her mommy and daddy, but they were dead; she saw them get killed by those mean boogeymen. Now she was with these Shimmer Monsters, and she didn't know what she was supposed to do.

Ne'Tahl scooped the pup into her arms and began to enter the bathing pool. Designed for those hunters who'd had a limb nearly severed, or some other severe injury that needed water to both support their weight and aid in regaining strength, it was fairly large. She descended to the third step and sat down in the water. She moved the pup into her lap, sat her sideways so that she faced to the huntress' right and prepared to clean the little ooman. Suddenly the strained hiss of an indrawn breath drew her attention to the pup's face. Eyes that viewed the world through the thermo-graphic spectrum showed her that the pup's face was scrunched up in pain, and that fluid was starting to drain from the pup's eyes.

Ne'Tahl turned her head to the right and looked up at Kre'Gel, hoping that the other could speak more of the ooman tongue than she could. _"Can you ask if she's in pain and what the source is?"_

Kre'Gel nodded once and leaned forward just a bit to get a better look at the pup who was now trying to get her feet out of the water. She placed her right hand on the pup's outside shoulder to gain the pup's attention. "What... wrong?" She asked as she struggled to form the unfamiliar words.

Like most of the Yautja, she easily understood the ooman's language. After all, where would be the pleasure in hearing the prey beg for their miserable existence if one couldn't understand what was being said? There were times though, that the prey _didn't_ beg for their life, but hurled insults and challenges instead. Hearing the prey say such things invariably made the hunt that much more enjoyable, which was the reason that almost all Yautja understood nearly fifty languages with many of them being ooman.

Amanda opened her eyes that were filling with fresh tears. She was trying not to cry, and be strong the way she'd been told. "It... it burns!" She said as she started crying while pointing to her feet, which were under the water.

Ne'Tahl understood the pup's answer and she reached out to pick up one of the pup's feet for a better look at it. The water had loosened some of the caked dirt in the cuts, and both females were now able to see the injuries more clearly.

"_Takhal, get the pain blocking gel. The pup's feet are more damaged than I thought."_ Ne'Tahl ordered as she released the pup's foot and looked once again at the pup's face. Something didn't seem right about this, and a strange suspicion started nagging at her. _"Ask her how old she is."_ She stated without taking her eyes off the pup.

"How... old... are you?" Kre'Gel asked after trying to remember the correct words. _'Cetanu take this slippery language! Why the pauk are all the words so difficult to remember when you want to say them?'_ She wondered angrily.

Amanda tried to stop crying enough to answer the lady's question, but all she really wanted right then was for her feet to stop hurting, and her mommy had always been the one to do that. "I'm six. This many. I had a burfday the day afore yeserday." She answered with a small amount of pride through her tears while holding up her fingers.

Instantly the mandibles of the female hunter holding the pup spread wide in rage while her sharp deadly teeth ground together. She'd never had a pup of her own yet, and she'd known that this one was young, but not _that_ young! Then she realized that with their drastically shorter lifespan, the oomans would develop and grow faster than a Yautja of the same age. Ne'Tahl looked over at her clan sister for confirmation and knew from the angered expression that she'd understood the answer correctly. This pup wasn't even old enough to be left on her own in the clan house!

Ne'Tahl now thought she understood why the pup was crying. Pups would do such things to let their bearers know when they were injured so that they could be tended to. At such a young age, pups didn't know how to care for themselves, so they needed the care of an observant adult to do such things for them. This one was now reliant on them for that care. _'Well, I suppose that I should consider this to be good training for when I have a pup of my own.'_ She thought sourly.

Ne'Tahl heard a soft purr from her right and saw that Kre'Gel was trying to sooth the pup that was still crying softly. Deciding that it was a good idea, she too began to purr as she started washing some of the dirt off the pup while avoiding the injuries that needed the pain blocking gel before being cleaned. She had barely started cleaning the pup when Takhal returned with the gel to block pain. She quickly lifted the pup out of the water so that the gel could be applied.

Takhal dumped a fair sized amount of gel in her hand and slathered the feet of the pup in Ne'Tahl's arms. Within seconds, the expression and demeanor of the pup changed, as the pain faded into nothing more than a memory. She avoided saying anything even though she thought this was a waste of pain gel. She didn't like the situation, but she wasn't about to argue with a higher ranked clan member, besides, the Ship's Elder had decreed that the ooman was to be treated as a clan pup for the time being.

When the hurting in her feet stopped, Amanda let out a long breath that she didn't realize she'd been holding. There were no Band-Aids on her feet, and no one had kissed them to make them better, but they weren't hurting anymore, and that was one thing she really wanted right now. Now that her feet weren't hurting anymore, she was able to pay more attention to what was going on around her. It was then that she noticed what sounded like two kitty cats purring.

'_They must be huge kitties to purr that loud.'_ She thought before she realized that the sounds were coming from the two Shimmer Monsters that were giving her a bath. She didn't argue that she was a big girl and could bathe herself, because she was very tired after walking a really long way, and the hot water felt good even though it was also making her a little sleepy.

Ne'Tahl tilted her head to her right in slight confusion as she felt the large thigh muscles in the pup's legs start twitching. Placing her right hand on the pup's legs, she quickly realized that it was the slight reflexive twitch of muscles that had been used for far too long. After washing the pup's back, she turned the pup so that it was facing away from her and began to prepare to wash the pup's hair. The first thing she did was remove the now dirty strip of ribbon from the pup's hair. She assumed that the pup's bearer had placed it there, and that the pup might want it later, so she set it aside to be kept. That done, she began to carefully wash the pup's hair. She had long known that the ooman growth was physically different from her own fleshy tendrils, which were extremely sensitive and filled with a lot of nerve tissue. Instead of flinching or grimacing in pain the way a Yautja would have likely done, the ooman pup seemed to relax even more when she started doing this.

Takhal watched in silence as her two clan sisters bathed the ooman pup. She didn't want it aboard the ship, but the Ship's Elder had made his decision without asking the opinion of any one else. That was his right as leader of this vessel, but once they reached the home world, and were in front of the Clan Matriarch, it would be a different story. Then, she would be able to freely voice her own opinion on the matter. When she saw Ne'Tahl start cleaning the pup's hair, she was thoroughly surprised that the pup barely reacted. Instead of loud and irritating complaints like most pups would voice, this pup actually seemed to be _enjoying_ the treatment! An unbidden hiss of surprise left her mandibles as she watched this. She knew from both observation and experience that just having the ornamental bands of prowess placed on one's tendrils was overwhelmingly excruciating. Her curiosity aroused, Takhal reached out, and taking hold of some of the pup's hair, began to pull until the pup voiced a complaint.

"Owww! That hurts." Amanda complained irritably as she fixed the big lady Shimmer Monster in front of her with the fiercest glare she could as she reached up to rub the hurt out of her scalp. She knew the Lady had done it on purpose, because she had watched her do it. "Want me to pull _your_ hair?" She demanded crankily. She was tired, her legs were sore from all the walking she'd done, she was hungry, and she was getting sleepy. All of which had combined and any one of them were enough to make her cranky, put all of those factors together, and one had the makings of a truly nasty situation.

"_That was unnecessary, Takhal. The pup is right; no one would have appreciated that."_ Kre'Gel said quickly.

"_I know. I was just curious. She wasn't complaining about what you were doing, so I wanted to find out if she had any feeling in her head at all."_ Takhal answered readily.

Kre'Gel gave a noncommittal grunt, because she couldn't exactly argue with that reasoning.

"_Well, she obviously does. Right now, she's so exhausted that her leg muscles are even twitching from over exertion. I want to get her bathed, treated, and clothed, so we can feed her before putting her to bed. After that, I want to see that recording for myself, because I'd like to know just what this pup faced that she would be so willing to accept our appearance when all other oomans I've seen have fled or screamed in terror."_ Ne'Tahl said firmly as she started rinsing the scent removing cleanser from the pup's hair.

"_You do make a valid point, Sister. The pup should have screamed or at least begun to tremble in fear at the sight of Chakak's face. I too wonder why she did not."_ Takhal answered.


	4. Chapter 4

Who I am 4

Ne'Tahl stood up from the pool and moved back to the infirmary with the pup in her arms. She waited with the pup facing to her right so that Kre'Gel could treat her injuries with healing gel. No sooner had the other huntress begun rubbing the gel on the pup's wounds, slight though they were, than the pup laid its head against her bare breast. Her mandibles flared in astonished shock at the thought that this strange little pup was about to try to feed from her. A startled glance downward showed her that the pup had closed its eyes, and was trying to fall asleep instead.

"No! No sleep yet!" Gre'Cham snapped firmly. "Dress, eat, then sleep. No sleep yet."

Amanda looked up at the lady tiredly. She couldn't deny that she was hungry, but she was also really sleepy. That was when she saw the clothes that were being handed to her. When the lady holding her, put her down on the giant metal table, she got up and looked at the clothes, thinking that it was a nightie. It wasn't until she shook them out, that she realized that most of them weren't like anything she'd ever seen, and she had no idea how to put them on.

Takhal clicked in amusement. From the obvious confusion in the pup, one would think that it had never seen proper clothing before. She laid the clothing and armor belonging to both her and the other females on the table, and separated her own stuff from the pile. After getting the pup's attention, she took the underwear and stepped back to show the pup the proper way to wear them, before doing the same with the loincloth.

Amanda watched the lady put the funny looking clothes on, and tried to do the same. The undies that she had to put on were like the ones her mommy would sometimes wear when she was going to get _really_ mushy with daddy, but that other thing was something she didn't really know what to do with. It didn't turn out to be as easy as it looked with the one that went on the outside of the undies, and the one who'd carried her helped her out with that. After getting the weird sort of half dress thing straight where it had a flap in front and another in back, she looked at the half shirt thing that she was supposed to wear. She was still trying to figure out which was the front and back when it was taken from her hands.

When the ooman pup couldn't even figure out the shirt, Takhal snorted derisively and took it from the ooman's small hands. She turned it the proper direction and lifted the pups arms straight into the air so she could put the garment on the pup. As soon as it was properly in place, she stepped back to look at the result. As much as she disliked the situation, even she had to admit that proper clothing made the ooman pup look much less... _foreign_.

Amanda looked down at the clothes she was now wearing because she still felt like she wasn't wearing very much at all. The undies covered her front okay, she guessed, but they weren't much more than a string in the back that went between the cheeks of her bottom. They were a light grey that matched the funny dress that didn't cover the sides of her legs. It didn't even cover all of the front or backs of her legs either _and_ it didn't even go all the way to her knees! The top was the same color as the other things and it was like a tank top that stopped just above her tummy. She looked up at the lady Shimmer Monsters and saw that they were putting on the same things, except that their clothes were big enough to fit them.

Amanda looked up at the lady who was still putting on those weird metal things, and tried to remember the name she'd been told.

"Natel, can I have some dinner now, please?" Amanda asked hopefully.

"Her name... _Ne'Tahl_! Say right... Ne'Tahl..." Gre'Cham snapped as she corrected the pup.

"Na..."

"_Ne_..."

"Ne... Tall."

The lady that made her say the name right gave a grunt and a short sharp nod of her head, before pointing at the lady who had put the stuff on her feet to make them stop hurting. "Takhal!"

"Tack... Hall."

"_Takhal_!"

"Tack... hall."

That was when the lady pointed to the one that helped give her a bath. "_Kre'Gel_!"

"Kre Gell..."

"Good!" The lady told her approvingly before pointing at herself. "_Gre'Cham_!"

"Gretch... Cham!" Amanda said carefully.

Gre'Cham nodded her head. The way the pup was pronouncing the names wasn't quite exact, but it was close enough to be acceptable without dishonoring those bearing the names. Then, tilting her head to her right she pointed her right index finger at the ooman pup. "You name?"

"My name is Amanda!" She stated proudly. "Amanda Collins."

Four sets of mandibles flared as the females stared at each other in stark disbelief. What was an ooman pup doing with a Yautja name?

"_Ahman'Dha_?" Ne'Tahl repeated in surprise.

When the pup excitedly nodded her head while smiling widely, Ne'Tahl knew that it could be no mistake, and that 'Tiny Growl' was indeed the pup's name. This was indeed a strange little ooman pup, but only Lilka, or perhaps Cetanu knew how she had come to have a Yautja name, because the reason was unknown to her.

Takhal huffed in disbelief. That this small, weak, and undeserving little _ooman_ had the name of one who could potentially become a hunter was unthinkable, but yet somehow it was. She didn't pretend to understand why such a thing had come to be, all she knew was that it had, and it was simply one more thing to displease her about this ooman.

Gre'Cham shook her head slightly at the pup's mispronunciation of her own name, but then, what could she expect from a pup who couldn't say their names properly either. Language aside, she knew it was time to feed this pup before putting her to bed. "Come. You eat, then sleep."

Amanda nodded her head before she looked down at what she was wearing, and frowned. These funny clothes didn't look anything like a nightie, so she wondered if she was supposed to sleep in them or not. "Is this what I sleep in?"

"No. Sleep in..." Kre'Gel began before she realized that she didn't know the ooman term for the underwear. She pulled the pup's loincloth aside and pointed at the underwear. "Sleep in that."

Amanda blushed deeply in embarrassment. She knew that mommy and daddy didn't like her wetting the bed, because she was supposed to be a big girl now, and big girls didn't do that. Even though it didn't happen often anymore, there were still a few times that she did have an accident. "What if I wet the bed?" She asked quietly.

All four Yautja females stared at each other in shock. Both Gre'Cham and Takhal began to growl threateningly. They hadn't been present to hear the pup state her age, so they weren't aware of just how young the pup really was.

"Older pup not wet bed!" Takhal finally snapped angrily.

"_The pup is only six, Takhal. Even our pups aren't house trained at that age..."_ Kre'Gel began chidingly.

"It only happens sometimes." Amanda protested softly as tears of humiliation formed in her eyes.

"You learn be like us!" Takhal insisted firmly. "Be strong. Not wet bed."

Amanda nodded her head as she started crying a little harder.

"_Stand off Takhal! For now, this pup is part of our clan, and she will be _taught and trained_ like one of our clan!"_ Ne'Tahl growled.

"_That pup does_ not_ deserve to be one of us! Once I speak to the Clan Matriarch, she will be disposed of!"_ Takhal interrupted.

"_What would you have as a solution, Takhal? Would you have our entire clan be no better than the ooman bad bloods who would have force bred and killed a mere _pup_?"_ Ne'Tahl demanded just as angrily. _"Where is the honor for our clan, if we only accept those obligations which are pleasant to us? Bad bloods are the scourge of _all_ intelligent races!"_

"_The bad bloods that killed her bearer are dead! Chakak killed them so our obligation is finished! We should not have to care for an ooman pup!"_ Takhal interrupted again.

"_If we allow the actions of bad bloods to go unanswered then we are no better than they. It is true that they're dead, but there is no one else to care for the pup that was left alive by Chakak's actions! If he had waited and allowed the bad bloods to force breed the pup before they killed her, then _his_ honor would be just as tainted and nonexistent as theirs! I like this no more than you do, but I will _not_ cast aside the honor of our entire clan simply because I must do something that is repulsive to me!"_ Ne'Tahl lectured angrily. _"The Clan Matriarch will decide the pup's fate and place. The Ship's Elder has placed this decision in her worthy claws, or do you doubt her ability to honorably lead us, and our clan?"_

Takhal shook her head. She knew that the aged and venerable huntress who led their clan was both experienced and knowledgeable in many things. No matter how she felt about this, she would just have to trust that any decision made by the Matriarch would be the right one. She grunted in resignation, knowing that for now, any further protests or hostility towards the ooman pup would only serve to draw unwanted attention from the Clan Matriarch later. _"You have made your point, Ne'Tahl."_

"_Then we will speak of this no more. For now, we must see to the immediate needs of this pup, by getting her fed and put to nest to sleep."_ Ne'Tahl said as she reached out and lifted the little ooman into her arms.

"_What will you do if it wets in the night?"_ Takhal asked with a shudder of revulsion.

"_There are some old skins that are nearly ready to be discarded, or cut up to be used for cleaning. Those can serve as a small nest for the pup. If she soils them, then it is of no consequence. I'll prepare a place in my room for her. Then, tomorrow, we can begin teaching her what she needs to know in case she does end up as a member of our clan."_ Ne'Tahl announced as she carried the pup to the feeding hall.

Looking at the tables in the dinning hall Ne'Tahl quickly saw that none of them was built to accommodate anyone as small as the ooman pup in her arms. She set the pup down on a table, and headed straight to the larder. Once in the food storage locker, she looked around and bared her teeth in a grin when she spotted the measured portions of the thick savory stew that her species was quite fond of. Getting bowls and spoons, she took the stuff to the prep area, which had a type of microwave that instantly heated the five bowls of food. Returning to the table, she gave each one there including the pup a bowl of stew along with a cup of water.

Amanda looked at the four Shimmer Monster ladies as they began eating the bowls of thick brown stew. She was more than hungry, and was a little surprised that they didn't even say Grace before they started eating. Remembering how mad her mommy got when she didn't wait, Amanda softly whispered what words she remembered before she picked up her spoon.

"What wrong with food?" Kre'Gel asked after thinking about the words for a moment when she saw the pup hesitate before starting to eat.

"Nothing. I was telling God 'thank you' like mommy always told me to do." Amanda said quietly before she dipped her spoon in the stew for the first time.

The stew's gravy was almost as thick as syrup, and clung in thick strings when she pulled the spoon out, plus the chunks of food in it were things that she'd never seen before. After giving the spoonful of stew a _really_ dirty look since she was sure that she wasn't going to like it, she tried a small taste.

Slightly tart, but mostly sweet, Amanda's eyes shot wide in delighted surprise at something that was even better than most of the desserts that her mommy would give her after she ate everything in her plate.

Takhal nearly choked when she started laughing at the pup's actions. That first hesitant taste had been followed by the pup rapidly eating the stew almost as fast as she could. "Eat slow. Not choke." She admonished sternly, even though she had to struggle to contain her laughter while saying it.

Made from more than a dozen different kinds of fruit from many different worlds, the fruit stew known to the Yautja as S'pke contained lots of natural sugars and pectin, all of which served to make for a very thick and syrupy gravy. Although it contained no meat, and therefore no proteins, or amino acids, it did have tons of sugars, complex carbohydrates and other nutrients that were vital to the physical needs of any living being. Since they were notoriously carnivorous, it would have thoroughly surprised other sentient beings to learn that the Yautja actually enjoyed such a flavorful and nutritious dish as S'pke.

"_The pup seems to like our food."_ Takhal snickered in spite of herself.

Although none of them commented on it, the Yautja noticed that the pup held the bowl close to her face, and was actually doing very well at not making a mess. To be as young as she was, being able to eat neatly was something in the pup's favor.

Ne'Tahl heard the comment on thanking God, and simply assumed that the pup had thanked the Gods for intervening in some way to spare her life. After all, it couldn't have been a mere coincidence that Chakak had been the one to be there. She knew the Young Blood Hunter to be meticulous about tracking down bad bloods because of what had happened to his own bearer. To have returned from his first training class, and proud of how well he'd done in spite of the injuries he'd received, only to see his bearer's body left skinned and headless by a rogue bad blood had inspired what now seemed to be a personal mission to eliminate _all_ bad bloods from the universe. It was the type of goal that would bring the Hunter great trophies and even greater honor if he succeeded.

Amanda had slown down the speed at which she was eating like she'd been told. She did so, for a couple of reasons, one was that she _had_ been told to, and the other was that the stew was really good. Besides, she didn't want to make anyone mad by messing up the clothes that they'd given her. She remembered all too well how mad her mommy and daddy would get when she got new clothes dirty. So she was now being careful not to spill or drip the thick syrupy stew.

After everyone had finished eating, Gre'Cham put the dishes in the sterilizer, and followed Ne'Tahl to the ship's dispensary where more than a dozen older hides and skins were collected to serve as bedding for the ooman pup. Gre'Cham carried the skins, while Ne'Tahl carried the pup, as the two made their way to the latter's quarters. Once there, Ne'Tahl set the pup down whose eyes were beginning to close with sleep and the two quickly arranged the nearly worn out hides and furs into an acceptable sleeping spot on the floor next to Ne'Tahl's bed. Once Gre'Cham left for her own quarters, Ne'Tahl stripped the pup down to her under cloth, placed the pup in the bed that had been prepared and stripped down to her own under cloth before extinguishing the lights and getting in bed her self.

Darkness. Engulfing, complete, and utter darkness. Darkness that could be filled with strangers, boogiemen, closet monsters, or any number of horrible things that she was terrified of. She wanted so badly for her mommy to come tuck her in, and turn on a nightlight for her, but her mommy didn't come. That was when it finally struck her. Her mommy would never come again. No more bedtime stories, no more hugs or kisses, no more cuddles, no more anything. Her mommy was dead. Her daddy was dead too, and that meant he would never be there for her either. Her heart ached with how much she wanted them both to come tell her that it would be okay, but they weren't coming. They would never come. They were dead, and she would never see them ever again. Tears of pain and grief filled her green eyes while choked and terrified sobs wracked her small body. Within seconds, she was in the midst of the type of all out crying fest that only a small scared and grief stricken little child could manage.

"Mommy..."

Ne'Tahl had heard the sobs and tried to ignore them, but then the pup had softly called out that one word. She didn't know the exact translation of the word, but then, she didn't really need to know it to understand the meaning behind it. Thinking back, she recalled the loving care and protective attention that she had received at that age, and knew what it was that the pup was crying out for. With the exception of the noise that was made, the pup's sobbing didn't really bother the Yautja female. While she did understand why the pup would be crying for the bearer that could never arrive, it was the scent of fresh fear originating from the pup that she didn't understand, nor was it something she could ignore.

Looking over the edge of her bed at the ooman pup, she easily saw the yellows and oranges of the ooman's warm skin that was streaked with shades of blue from the tears that were much cooler due to exposure of the surrounding air. Ne'Tahl's mandibles flared in renewed anger at how a mere pup was in the hands of a clan that was unknown to it. She was certain that the pup would be having this same reaction even if she were among others of her own ooman clan, but then they would most likely know how to deal with the pup's loss as well. Not knowing what else to do, Ne'Tahl got out of her bed and crouched next to the pup.

The large female hunter gently ran a single claw down the pup's cheek to let it know that she was there, and would provide the same protection that the pup's own bearer would have done. She was startled by the pup's reaction though, as the ooman's eyes went wide and stared straight up and not in her direction. The scent of fear emanating from the pup was suddenly _very_ strong even through the skins that should have helped cover the smell. An expression of pure terror graced the pup's features and a choked, almost strangled sound emerged from it. That was when she recalled that oomans had a radically different type of vision than a Yautja did.

Concerned that there was something in the room that the pup was able to see that she couldn't; Ne'Tahl barked a single command to activate the lights, while she instantly snatched her mask and a spear from above her bed and straddled the pup in a combat stance. She donned her mask, before scanning the entire chamber using each of the visual modes in her battle mask. Nothing. There was nothing in the room except to two of them. So why was the pup so terrified? Replacing the spear in its holding rack, she removed her mask and replaced that as well. Turning her attention back to the terrified pup, she saw that the tiny thing was slowly regaining some composure.

As afraid as she was of the dark, Amanda had would have screamed in terror when she felt something touch her face, but she was suddenly too scared to find her voice. Then there was one of those strange growling noises and the lights came back on. She saw the lady Shimmer Monster grab a metal mask and the spear like the first had used to kill those mean and strange boogeymen and stand over her while ready to fight. Her eyes went wide in stunned shock at the sight of the lady who was looking around like she wanted to do a _lot_ more than just kill the boogeyman. A moment later, Ne'Tahl put the spear and mask away, and leaned down to her. Now that she could see that there was no boogeyman or any other mean monsters in the room, she began to calm down a little, but she still wanted her mommy and daddy who couldn't come anymore. Once more tears began rolling down her cheeks, as she sought the only source of comfort available to her. In a flash, she was out of the strange blankets and huddling up next to the huge body of Ne'Tahl as she wrapped her arms as far around the large body as she could.

It took every bit of rationalizing she had not to lash out when the ooman pup had suddenly lunged towards her. Claw tipped fingers tensed and teeth ground before she realized that the pup was simply trying to huddle up against her body as if for warmth in a cold area. Even though the actions of the pup weren't even remotely hostile, Ne'Tahl wasn't pleased with the suddenness of her action. She released a disgusted growl of irritation as she looked down at the crying pup who clung to her as if for life itself. She gave the command to deactivate the lights, while taking the pup in her arms, and sat down on her bed. Within seconds, the scent of fear once again began to emerge from the pup that was still in her arms. Concerned and confused at the same time, she eased the pup back slightly to get a look at it. Once again, she saw the eyes of the ooman staring at nothing. Taking her left hand, she passed it slowly in front of the pup's eyes. No movement. Then curiosity prompted her to move her finger slowly towards the pup's face until she touched the tip of the pup's nose.

'_She can't see anything with the lights off!'_ Ne'Tahl realized suddenly as the pup jumped at the touch, and that the eyes had never moved. With a growl of resignation, she activated the lights once more, and watched as the pup's eyes blinked a few times before regaining focus.

"_Come, you may sleep with me for now. But I warn you that if you soil my bed just once; I will put you back on the floor and leave you there with no skins at all!"_ Ne'Tahl growled threateningly as she got back in her sleeping furs with the pup still in her arms.

It took a few moments for Amanda to realize that she was going to sleep with the Shimmer Monster. She had been laid down in the bed and the furry blanket pulled over both of them before she also realized that the dim lights would be left on as well. She snuggled up closer to Ne'Tahl and didn't care a bit that all she had on was the pair of weird undies. Then, a huge arm draped over her and pulled her right up against the Shimmer Monster, right as she felt the lady's chest start to vibrate from the soft purring noise that she was making. Even without her mommy and daddy there, Amanda began to feel safe. After all, no boogeyman would be stupid enough to go around a lot of Shimmer Monsters, and even if one _did_ get in, she was sleeping with the _biggest_ Shimmer Monster she had seen so far! Even so, it still wasn't enough to make her stop missing her mommy and daddy. Once more, the grief of her loss took hold as she began to cry softly.

_**Author's Notes: I've had this on my computer for a couple of years now, and someone finally convinced me to start posting it. I am currently working on chapter 12, but remember, reviews are much loved, appreciated, AND inspiration!**_


	5. Chapter 5

Who I am 5

As her mind moved to consciousness, she became aware of two important facts before anything else. She was on her back, and there was something lying on top of her with its head between her breasts. Before she even opened her eyes to see what it was, Ne'Tahl had a long bladed and deadly knife in each hand. Slowly opening her eyes just a tiny crack she spotted the sleeping form of an ooman pup. For a brief moment, confusion flooded her mind, before she remembered why the ooman was there. There was absolutely no sound as she put the two blades back in their hidden spots. She had maintained the slow steady breathing pattern that she'd had while sleeping, but now she released a breath of disgust. The pup had spent almost half the sleeping period crying for the deceased bearer. The noise and shuddering sobs had not only kept her awake, but had grated roughly on her nerves as well. Then, there was the pup's refusal to stay asleep whenever she had moved. It was as if the pup didn't want to be separated from her. Thus, she'd had no opportunity to go and view the recording of what had happened to bring the pup into her possession. It was irritating in the extreme. No, it was beyond that. It was infuriating. For one thing, no pup of such a young age belonged on a hunting ship. Females who did have pups that young were often restricted to other worlds with less dangerous prey to avoid this exact type of situation.

Ne'Tahl flared her mandibles in anger as a low growl left her throat. An orphaned pup was now, not only sleeping in her room, but on _top_ of her! If she had wanted to care for a pup at this stage of her life, she would have taken a male and had one of her own! It was enough to make her want to kill something slowly with her bare hands just so she could work off some of the rage. Then, before she could give further voice to her disgust and anger, the pup started to stir as it began to awaken.

Cold blue hair that was only slightly warmer than the surrounding air, skin that radiated a bright orange of escaping body heat and pale yellow eyes that indicated a greater warmth in that area of the pup's body were what she saw as she looked at the waking ooman pup. Then the pup raised her head, and the skin that had been in contact with her own much warmer body was colored a bright yellow like the eyes. The pup looked at her for a few seconds in seeming confusion before blinking those strange eyes.

"Ne'Tahl, will you be my mommy now? Please?"

The Yautja's mandibles twitched in surprise. She was surprised that the pup had actually managed to say her name properly, but then the content of the pup's request dawned on her and those same mandibles drooped in shock. All coherent thought flew from her mind for a moment as she stared at the ooman still sprawled across her body. This was _not_ something she had expected or prepared for! Being assigned as a caretaker for an orphaned pup was a very serious responsibility, and though there had been a few occasions that the assigned caretaker had abandoned that responsibility, they were extremely rare. Abandoning a pup was something that _required_ a death sentence! It was one of the most heinous crimes a Yautja might commit that didn't involve the death of another. Still, she couldn't help but think back and wonder _why_ the pup wanted her to replace its bearer. As hard as she thought about the events of the previous night, she couldn't think of a single thing she had done that any other Yautja wouldn't have.

Being able to understand, but not speak the pup's language was a bit of a small blessing at that moment, since she didn't have to actually _answer_ the pup. Instead, she stroked the pup gently on her head, and started her rumbling purr to sooth the pup. Had anyone asked her how she felt at that moment, she would have told them how repugnant she found the pup's appearance. Yet at the same time, she felt her chest swelling with pride because being _requested_ as a caretaker by a pup was a very high honor. It proclaimed to each and every Yautja in existence that the pup considered the prospective caretaker's skills, and knowledge to be better than those of others. Right then, Ne'Tahl was actually glad that she couldn't speak the pup's language, because she had no idea how to answer that request. Still, she knew that she would have to pass that request on to the Clan Matriarch if the pup was allowed to remain among them.

The Yautja female was still thinking about this when the pup started squirming. She looked at the pup curiously, as the little ooman got out of the bed and began making some rather strange actions.

"I needa go potty." The ooman pup blurted suddenly.

Ne'Tahl tilted her head in some confusion, because 'potty' was not an ooman word that she was familiar with. On the other claw, the pup's actions of grabbing herself between her legs while keeping those legs moving gave her an idea as to what the pup might need. She got off the bed, motioned for the pup to follow her, and led the little one to the waste closet. She pointed at the oval receptacle that was placed in the floor, and moved the pup's hands to remove the under cloth that covered the pup's groin. She positioned the pup over the receptacle, and stepped back to allow the pup to eliminate her body waste.

Amanda squatted with one foot on each side of the weird hole in the floor that had a slightly raised rim, and looked up at the lady who was taking care of her, because she wasn't sure what to do. That was when Ne'Tahl squatted down and motioned for her to do the same. That was when the lady pointed between her legs and made a motion like something was coming out and pointed to the hole beneath her. Before Amanda could figure out what the lady meant, she felt herself starting to go because she just couldn't hold it any more. She looked up at the lady expecting to be in trouble, but saw her nod her approval instead. That was when she realized that this, whatever it was, was actually a potty, even though it was the weirdest looking potty that she'd ever heard of. Once she was done, Amanda looked around for the paper, but didn't see any. So she looked up at Ne'Tahl who had her head turned to give her some privacy.

"Where's the toy it paper? I'm sposed to wipe now, but I don't see it anywhere." She said more than a little embarrassed at having to ask for something like that.

Hearing that question, Ne'Tahl figured that the pup was done, and even though she had no idea what the pup was referring to, she was pretty sure that it had something to do with the next phase of the process. She placed her hand on the pup's shoulder to make sure she stayed in place, before she slowly, and deliberately moved her hand to hit a button right next to the pup. She'd made sure that the pup could see what she did, but she still snorted in amusement when the pup let out a piercing shriek of pure shock at the jets of water that were now cleaning the pup. Almost instantly, the pup was trying to move away from the water, and Ne'Tahl growled and shook her head.

Amanda had shrieked in startled surprise when the jet of water blasted her bottom to get her clean. She tried to get away from it, but to no avail, since Ne'Tahl was holding her in place. Suddenly, the water changed to air, she gasped in fear, and surprise at what was happening. She barely heard Ne'Tahl start purring like one of those huge kitties again, and she tried to relax. The blast of air lasted just a few short seconds before it stopped. Trembling from both the fear and shock, she looked up at Ne'Tahl who had removed her hand, and pointed at her weird undies. Standing up she found that she was totally dry between her legs, and on her bottom. She picked up the undies to put them on, when she felt the lady push her towards the door.

Amanda looked back at Ne'Tahl nervously, and saw that she was taking off her own undies to use that _really_ scary potty. Amanda shuddered and walked back into the bedroom to put her undies back on. She heard a hiss behind her and looked to see the door close. Not knowing what else to do, she put her undies on, and then tried to figure out how to put the other clothes on as well.

As she left the waste closet, she was pleasantly surprised to see the pup in the process of putting on her clothes. The under cloth, and loin cloth were already in place, and the pup was trying to see which side went in front and which side went in back for her top. Ne'Tahl stepped over to the pup and took the top out of those tiny hands. Then, she made the pup hold one side while she held the other. She pointed to the lower cut side and pointed to the pup's chest, then pointed to the taller side and the pup's back. When the pup bared her blunt teeth, Ne'Tahl thought it was a challenge of some kind before the pup gave her thanks and began wriggling into the top.

"See! I did it, even in the dark!" Amanda told the lady happily.

'_Dark? How can this pup think it's dark in here when there are enough heat lamps active to make it uncomfortably hot with a little more time?'_ Ne'Tahl wondered in confusion as she looked down at the now dressed ooman.

Ne'Tahl thought no more about the pup's odd comment as she donned her own clothing. A thermal mesh went on first, followed by a fresh under cloth, before she put on a clean loincloth and breast halter. Then she put her armor on, followed by a standard battle mask.

Amanda watched quietly as Ne'Tahl got dressed. As soon as the lady was finished putting on the metal things and a necklace with lots of spiky things and bones on it, the lady picked her up and placed Amanda on her hip almost like a baby. She frowned slightly because she felt that she was getting to be a big girl now, but when Ne'Tahl walked out of the bedroom and started going somewhere, Amanda knew that she would have to almost run just to keep up. This lady was _fast_!

Amanda stayed quiet and tried to watch where they were going so she wouldn't get lost in this strange place, but then Ne'Tahl turned a corner, and stopped with a large group of more Shimmer Monsters. There were a lot of them, and when she tried to count them all, she got all the way to ten before she lost count. That was when she saw that Ne'Tahl was the tallest one there. Not only was she taller than the other Shimmer Monsters, but she had bigger muscles too! All of the Shimmer Monsters were going into one room, and then it was apparently Ne'Tahl's turn to go in. Amanda immediately recognized the place that looked a little like the lunchroom at her school. She heard lots of clicks, growls, grunts and other noises coming from the Shimmer Monsters who were sitting at the tables and eating. Ne'Tahl carried her to a table that wasn't full yet, and sat her down on it with a grunt while making a motion to stay put, before making her way to a line where food was waiting on trays just like lunchtime at her school. Amanda felt her tummy rumble at the thought of more of that sweet soup stuff she'd eaten before going to bed.

_**Author's Notes: Please feed the Plot Demons by leaving a review, they serve as inspiration, and they let me know how well or poorly I am doing. I will respond to every signed review!**_


	6. Chapter 6

Who I am 6

As Amanda started looking the cafeteria, she saw a boy... man?... Shimmer Monster sitting not too far away who was already eating his breakfast. Even though there were plenty of others at the same table, her attention had been captured by this one. She watched in pure fascination, as the flaps with those huge spiky teeth would spread wide to let the Shimmer Monster put a spoon full of food in his mouth. After just a few bites, the Shimmer Monster turned his head to look at her. That was when Amanda realized that she had been rude by staring.

"I didint mean to stare, but they way you eat with those extra teeths is really neat! My name is Amanda. What's yous?" She asked while scooting closer.

Keen senses that told him he was being watched made him turn to face the source of the observation. Seeing that it was an ooman sitting there on the table staring at him while he ate did not make him happy. He'd heard a rumor that there was now an ooman pup onboard, but he hadn't given any credence to the rumor. Now he was being blatantly stared at by the reality. His mandibles twitched in annoyance when the pup apologized, and even tried to introduce itself. His eyes narrowed as he glared at the pup as a warning to leave him alone. That was when he noticed that the pup had moved closer to him. He flared all four of his mandibles and opened his mouth to show his pointed teeth as he growled deep in his throat in warning. Seeing that the only reaction from the pup was wider eyes, he prepared to do something a little more drastic. Before he could, his attention was drawn to Ne'Tahl setting down two trays of food on the other side of the pup, and then the female reached out, and slid the pup closer to her.

He knew of Ne'Tahl, but then everyone on the ship knew of her. She was the largest and most vicious hunter onboard. He'd personally seen her kill a Hard Meat by breaking its neck with a single powerful and crashing blow from her right fist. She had a well deserved reputation as the single most eager hunter in the entire Clan! Suddenly, he received a shock that caused his mandibles to fall slack in disbelief as the most dangerous female on the ship began tending to the ooman pup by enticing it to eat! Not desiring to be beaten and severely maimed or possibly killed for threatening a pup that the renowned and dangerous female was obviously caring for, he quickly turned his attention back to his own partially eaten meal, and fervently hoped that she hadn't witnessed his display towards the pup in her care.

"_I know you understood both her compliment and her request, Roonak. Since you are one of the few on this ship that can actually speak ooman, I will occasionally call on you to provide translations to make sure she understands correctly. So you might as well honor her request and complete the introduction, especially since she has already given you her name."_ The big female said casually as she handed the ooman pup a piece of meat from one of the trays.

"Thank you Ne'Tahl." Amanda said happily. She held the piece of meat in her hand as she closed her eyes and once more whispered the few words that she could remember. Then, she took the rather large, for her, piece of meat and started to bite into it. She had just gotten one end into her mouth when the Shimmer Monster she had been watching spoke to her.

"I am Roonak." The hunter said simply as he turned back to his food, not wanting any further interaction with either of the females.

"Hi Roonak." Amanda responded happily, as she once more prepared to get a bite of the strip of strange looking meat.

As she tried to bite down on it, Amanda realized that the strip of meat was like some kind of jerky that her parents would sometimes get her for a treat. Dry, stiff, hard, and _really_ tough, it was almost impossible for her to get a bite out of it. After nearly a minute of struggling with it, and worrying at it with her teeth, she realized that the drool in her mouth was making it softer. Instead of drooling all over it, and making it yucky, she got another idea. She pulled it out of her mouth and dipped the tip of it in her cup of water for a moment or two. Then she tried it again. This time she was able to get a bite of it much easier. With a delighted grin, she stuck the strip of meat in her cup of water and let it stay there while she ate some of the other food.

Ne'Tahl stared in consternation at the ooman pup when she stuck the small strip of meat in her water and held it there for a short time, before biting off a piece. She had seen the pup have some trouble eating the dried meat, but then most pups did. She cocked her head to her right in both curiosity and confusion. Then the ooman stuck the meat back in the water and left it there! She watched the pup pick up the small bowl of mashed grains and began to eat that while completely ignoring the meat. She contented her self with eating her strips of dried meat while keeping a watchful eye on the pup, but what the pup was doing made no sense at all!

After finishing the weird oatmeal or whatever it was, Amanda grabbed the strip of meat out of the water, since it had soaked for a while. Easily able to bite into it now that it had softened up, she held it in her right hand, while she used her left to stick a second strip of meat in her water. The weird jerky had a texture and flavor that was really different, but still very good and tasty. She didn't know what kind of jerky it was, except that it wasn't beef, turkey, or buffalo. It didn't really matter, since it was good, and she rarely got to have jerky at all, so that by itself was like a treat, but then she had never had jerky for breakfast, so that made this sort of special.

Ne'Tahl was keeping an eye on the strange actions of the ooman pup, for several reasons. The first was for the pup's safety, since she wasn't sure just how well the pup could handle herself in any given situation including this one. Second, was because of how strangely the pup was acting. Finally, this pup, no matter how strange, was, for now anyway, part of the Clan, and therefore a responsibility for the females of the ship who normally cared for the very young. She watched with more than a little interest as the pup finished her mashed grains, and started on the strip of dried meat that had been stuck in her cup of water. That was when she saw that the ooman pup was no longer having any trouble eating it. Her curiosity piqued, she reached over, pulled the second strip of meat out of the cup, and sniffed at it. Smelling nothing except meat, she pinched off a small piece, and cautiously placed it in her mouth. She found that the water had softened it up, and had even restored a majority of the flavor, so that it tasted much closer to that of a fresh kill.

Her mandibles clicked in pleasure as Ne'Tahl savored the small piece of meat that she'd taken from the ooman pup. She got up, went to the serving line, got a larger cup of water along with another couple more strips of meat, before returning to the table. She had just sat down in her seat next to the pup when the little ooman female held a hand out towards her. To her surprise, she saw that the tiny pup was actually offering her half of the second strip of meat! She accepted the piece of slightly dripping meat with her left hand while she dropped the two new strips of meat in the larger cup of water. This little pup was a strange one, Ne'Tahl had no doubt about that, but even so, she was _not_ expecting what she now thought was an ooman expression of happiness when she accepted the piece of meat.

"_Did I just see that pup share its own meat with you?"_ Takhal demanded in a tone that bordered on disgust, as she sat down.

"_Yes. You did, actually. And believe it or not, she's just shown me a rather tasty trick."_ Ne'Tahl answered easily.

"_What kind of trick?"_ Takhal demanded skeptically.

"_Soak your meat in water for a few moments. It restores a lot of the flavor and juices."_ Ne'Tahl replied quietly with a smug set to her mandibles.

"_Prove it!"_ Takhal retorted.

Instead of voicing her answer, Ne'Tahl simply gave an obvious and pointed look down at the two strips of meat that were soaking in a cup of water. Her mandibles twitched and clicked slightly in amusement, as the other female eyed the meat warily. Soft clicks of laughter emerged as she watched Takhal try a small piece that she'd torn off.

"_Well, I can't fault the pup for her sense of taste!"_ Takhal admitted in a grudging grunt.

"_Still isn't as good as fresh meat, but it's a lot better than the typical dried stores we're allowed while on ship."_ Ne'Tahl added wryly.

"_That is why I can't wait for us to head home! Fresh or at least freshly thawed meat will be a wonderful change. It's just too bad that we're not allowed to make a few kills to provide ourselves with fresh meat on these provision hunts."_ Takhal replied.

"_If that was allowed, then those greedy Young Bloods would be eating all of it, and we'd _still_ have to rely on dried stores!"_ Ne'Tahl scoffed.

Amanda paid no attention to the conversation that took place, _literally_, over her head! Even though she was sitting on the table itself, the two females were still taller than she was. That made no difference to her though, nor did the conversation that she couldn't understand a word of. Instead, she had busied herself with finishing her breakfast. Realizing that she was getting full, she had given Ne'Tahl half of the second piece of jerky, because she knew that she wouldn't be able to finish it, and had been taught not to waste things, especially food. As she drank the cup of water, she was wishing heartily for a glass of milk or apple juice. But then, she saw that even the grown up Shimmer Monsters were drinking water too, and contented herself with what she had, since she was now drinking the same thing as the grown ups.

While they were eating their first meal, and talking pleasantly, the two females were also keeping a watchful eye on the ooman pup. Ne'Tahl was watching to make sure the pup didn't do anything else of a strange nature that might end up getting the little thing hurt. Takhal, even though she would never have admitted to such a thing, was just pleased that the pup was sitting quietly and allowing the adults to talk among themselves. When they had finished their meal, Takhal took the dishes, and dropped them in the automated sanitizer to be cleaned, before rejoining the female and the pup as they were leaving the dinning hall.

"_So what are you planning for today, now that you're stuck with that?"_ Takhal asked casually with a gesture at the pup, which was once again tucked under a single arm against Ne'Tahl's side.

"_The first thing I'm going to do; is get her back to the infirmary to check the injuries to her feet. Since they should be fine, I'll bathe her to get the dried gel off, and then I'm going to make her sit and watch, while I try to find a sparring partner. The males aboard ship aren't all that willing to train with me for some reason."_ Ne'Tahl finished with a smug laugh.

"_Mind if I join you then? I too could use a worthy opponent in a sparring match. I think our resident males have grown weary of being soundly defeated."_ Takhal agreed laughing as she followed the other female through the ship to the infirmary.

"_I would be honored. Besides, a match between us would give these bothersome males a few things to think about."_ Ne'Tahl said as she entered the infirmary with the ooman pup still on her hip.

"_Think about, and _drool_ about, you mean!"_ Takhal stated smugly.

"_That too, my friend, that too."_ Ne'Tahl laughed heartily.

_**Author's Notes: Please feed the Plot Demons by leaving a review, they serve as inspiration, and they let me know how well or poorly I am doing. I will respond to every signed review!**_


	7. Chapter 7

Who I am 7

Ne'Tahl walked in to the infirmary and set the small pup on one of the large metal beds that were built to accommodate one of their own much larger bodies, and began to check the feet on the little one. Finding that the numerous cuts and other injuries had healed perfectly, she picked the ooman up and carried her to the adjoining room with the bathing pool. She set the pup down on her own feet and removed the pup's clothing. That done she turned her attention to her own apparel.

After Ne'Tahl had pulled her clothes off, Amanda looked around and spotted the pool. With a huge grin on her face, and a delighted squeal of joy, she darted forward and jumped in. There was no dive, no technique, and no recognizable method to her entry into the pool. Instead, it was a flat out run that didn't end until she was under the water!

Both females looked up at the sound of the splash. All that was there to be seen were the waves and ripples of the entry. Instantly, Ne'Tahl looked around, and felt her blood run cold when the ooman pup was nowhere to be seen. She and Takhal were both reaching for their masks, when the pup surfaced in the water. Both females looked at the ooman pup, then at each other as if to find out if they were seeing things correctly.

Amanda shook her head to get the water out of her eyes as she surfaced. She had always loved swimming, and she looked over at the two lady Shimmer Monsters that were getting ready to get in the pool with her.

"Nyah, nyah! You can't catched me!" Amanda taunted in a singsong tone as she dove back under water.

Ne'Tahl looked over at her clan sister to see if she really had understood the ooman correctly. The twitching mandibles and narrowed eyes on the female hunter told her that she had in fact, understood the blatantly obvious challenge from a mere snippet of a pup!

In an instant, both female Yautja were plunging into the water intent on catching the little pup. The problem was that neither of them was wearing their battle mask. Thus, reliant on the thermal spectrum, they had a _really_ tough time catching the little ooman! Every time one of them got near, they received a splash of water right in their face, which completely hid the pup as she made her escape from them. The challenge was made even more difficult by the fact that the pup could apparently _see_ while under the water _without_ any type of battle mask! This was made obvious to the two females when the pup would splash one of them and immediately dive under the surface, only to resurface elsewhere in the pool.

After a truly frustrating period of time, Takhal began to realize that the pup was effectively using the temperature smothering effect of the water as an excellent and natural camouflage. It was more than a little irritating to find herself being outwitted by an ooman, but to be outwitted by a mere _pup_ of an ooman? It was humiliating in the extreme! To make matters worse, she could tell from the sounds that the pup was making that it was thoroughly enjoying this. Then the hiss of the door opening drew her gaze to the entry of Kre'Gel right as she was once again splashed in the face by the raucously laughing ooman pup.

Behind her battle mask, Kre'Gel blinked in surprise at the sight of the tiny pup splashing both of the much larger females who were apparently trying to apprehend the little thing. Then, suddenly the pup disappeared beneath the water. Quickly switching the visual modes of her battle mask, she finally caught sight of the little one swimming awkwardly, but nonetheless effectively beneath the surface. Her mandibles went slack in surprise when the pup surfaced to splash water in the face of the largest female on the ship, while laughingly issuing a taunting challenge at the same time. Unable to contain her curiosity, she just _had_ to ask.

"_What in the name of the Gods is going on here?"_ Kre'Gel demanded in a tone of surprise.

"_The pup has challenged us to catch it! Somehow, that miserable little beast is able to see through this Cetanu cursed water, and she is using it to her advantage!"_ Ne'Tahl growled angrily as she stood in a crouch with muscles tensed, ready to spring instantly.

Kre'Gel grinned as she saw the pup begin to surface right in front of the obviously enraged Ne'Tahl. Her grin of expectation at the pup's capture quickly turned to an expression of stark disbelief, as the pup splashed water right in the female's face while again moving to avoid capture.

Amanda shrieked in surprise as she was suddenly and unceremoniously hauled from the water by an irate Takhal. Realizing that she been fairly caught, and that her game was over, she turned to grin at the big Shimmer Monster.

"That was fun! Lots and lots of fun! Even if you did win, it was still fun! Can we play again? This time Ne'Tahl runs in the water and we try to catched her." Amanda exclaimed happily though more than slightly out of breath.

"_A game! The pup considers this to be a game? We have been chasing the rottenly miserable little beast all over this pool for nearly an hour and that... that _creature_ considers it to be a mere game?"_ Ne'Tahl exploded in fury as she approached the steps, and Takhal who was holding the source of her current rage.

Takhal knew that her infuriated Clan Sister was possibly angry enough to disobey the edict of the Ship's Elder that had proclaimed the ooman pup to be Clan until the Clan Matriarch decided otherwise. She was aware that only the pup's apparently happy proclamation of her victory had cooled her own rage, but that same declaration had likely made the other Yautja even angrier.

"No more play now. Pup must have bath!" Takhal stated firmly as she stood the ooman pup on the first step.

Hearing the moving water behind her that signaled the approach of Ne'Tahl, she turned to glance at the still irate female, only to see her lean towards the pup and flare her mandibles as wide as they would go in absolute, but silent rage that was directed straight at the pup. Takhal glanced at the pup, expecting to see it quaking in pure terror at the sight of the angry female, only to see a rather strange expression on the face of the pup.

Amanda's eyes bulged and her mouth dropped open when she saw Ne'Tahl spread those extra tooth things and show all of the teeth in her other mouth too. The naturally inquisitive nature of a child caused her to lean forward for a better look at all those sharp looking teeth.

"Wow! That's a whole bunches and bunches of teeths! I bet you can bite the Dentististed really bad if he tries to give you one of those stupid shots!" Amanda exclaimed in awe at the sight of Ne'Tahl's open mouth.

Ne'Tahl closed her mandibles as her rage was replaced with stark confusion at the odd comment from the pup. Realizing that she'd wanted to kill the little thing no matter how dishonorable it would have been, didn't really help to improve her mood that much. Suddenly, her mandibles went slack as she realized that this was the second time that this pup had been faced with such a threatening display, but had yet to show any fear during either of them. That was when she became determined that as soon as the pup was bathed, she was going to view that recording if she had to personally challenge Chakak, and brutally pound him to within a nok of his life for the right to do so.

"_Let's get her bathed, and fast! I'm going to see that recording, and I dare someone to interfere!"_ Ne'Tahl growled dangerously.

"_Did Cetanu grant his own courage to this ooman to make her so fearless of us?"_ Kre'Gel asked cautiously.

"_I don't know, Kre'Gel. But I will know the why of this before the day ends!"_ Ne'Tahl ground out angrily.

Reaching out she took the still gaping ooman pup from Takhal's arms, and began to use her hand to scrub away the remains of the gels that been used to block the pain and heal the wounds on the pup.

Amanda watched as the large female bathed her. Once again, she felt that she was big enough to bathe herself. She looked up at the lady who was scrubbing her, and couldn't help but notice the short, rapid moves that were exactly like the ones her mommy used to make when she was angry. Amanda could only think of one reason why Ne'Tahl would be mad right now.

"Ne'Tahl are you mad at me cause Takhal won when she catched me?" Amanda asked Ne'Tahl cautiously.

Ne'Tahl looked at the pup sharply when she heard that question. She had to think about her answer for a moment, and after being honest with herself, she realized that the reason she was angry was that all her skills at both tracking and hunting had meant nothing. A mere pup had continued to avoid her best efforts while simply playing a game. If a pup could avoid her so easily while playing a game, how well could an adult do so when trying to survive? Further reflection revealed that it wasn't the pup she was angry at, but rather herself and her own performance. She also knew that she was even more angered that the only reaction from the pup after being given a visual threat had been one of admiration for her features. Had it been anyone else to have gotten that reaction from the pup, Ne'Tahl knew that she would have been laughing at the scene.

While the realizations were unwelcome to her, they did make her see that the little pup had only been trying to have a bit of fun. She knew that if she had seen her own bearer and sire killed by bad bloods that she wouldn't feel like enjoying herself the next day, but then that was part of the package with a pup. A short attention span meant that as long as the little pup wasn't given cause to think about the demise of her bearer and sire, then she shouldn't become depressed again.

"_Since you can speak ooman, and I can't, you'll have to tell her for me."_ Ne'Tahl said as she glanced at the observer of the impromptu game. _"I am angry for not catching her as soon as she started playing."_

Kre'Gel's mandibles twitched in surprise at the admission of the larger female. "She say she not angry at you. She angry for not catch you faster."

"_Tell her that she did very well to avoid the two of us for as long as she did. Even though she was only playing a game, she still did very well."_ Takhal said with a small amount of approval.

Ne'Tahl snickered ruefully at that. _"Be glad that she's had no training! She might have humiliated us by actually winning."_

"They say you did good. Nearly win. Nearly beat both. That good for still being pup." Kre'Gel said after thinking carefully about that words she would need to use.

Amanda smiled brightly at all three of the ladies. She was glad that Ne'Tahl wasn't mad at her, but she wasn't happy that the lady was a little bit of a sore loser. Then, the slight clink of metal caught her attention. Looking at the source of the sound, she saw that Takhal had lots of gold beads in her strange looking hair. She reached out and grabbed one to get a better look at it.

As soon as the pup grabbed one of her tendrils, Takhal tensed and leaned closer to the pup to prevent the highly sensitive flesh from being pulled in the way she'd done to the pup the previous night. Instead of pulling though, the pup was handling her tendril gently as she examined the end of it. Sensations of pure and _sensually_ exquisite pleasure coursed through her as the pup casually handled the nerve filled tendril.

Both Ne'Tahl and Kre'Gel had watched in consternation as the ooman handled the tendril of the female in front of her. Both were somewhat surprised that the pup didn't pull on it in the way the female had done to the pup. Instead, the pup was careful in her curious examination of the end of the highly sensitive tendril. Neither commented on the obvious pleasure that Takhal was experiencing because of the sensations, but the expression on the female's face spoke volumes.

"Those are pretty! Can I get some like that? Those are pretty like my ear rings that daddy gaved me." Amanda exclaimed as she pulled back her wet hair to proudly show off her jewelry.

Curiosity made all three of the females look at what was being shown to them. All three reacted with various levels of surprise once they saw what the pup was trying to show them. Clamping a bead or bracket around sensitive flesh was one thing, but the decorative items the pup was displaying actually went _through_ her flesh! Unable to prevent the thought from occurring to her, Ne'Tahl cringed at the mere thought of how it would feel to have something so painfully shoved through one of her tendrils. The claw tipped fingers on Takhal's hand carefully lifted the pup's ear lobe to look behind it, only to see that not only did the two objects go completely through the pup's ear, but looked as if they were even made to be easily replaced if desired.

"Those can be changed?" Takhal asked aghast at the thought of doing the same to her own bracket style beads.

Amanda quickly reached up and removed one of the earrings in her right ear, before handing it to the big lady in front of her. "Mommy pierceded my ears for me, and daddy got me these ones for me to wear. He telled me that I look pretty when I wear them." She said brightly as she dropped the earring in the large hand.

Takhal looked down at the tiny piece of jewelry in a mixture of awe and horror. She couldn't help but think of how agonizing it would feel to remove one of her own bands so quickly; that this ooman pup had just pulled something out of her own flesh merely so she could look at it was disturbing. It was only a simple tiny ball of metal with a metal shaft, and a strange bracket to hold it in place, but she found herself wanting nothing to do with it.

She held the tiny thing out to the pup, and watched in morbid fascination as the pup tilted her head to the right, and cut her eyes in that direction while concentrating on putting the jewelry back in her ear. She couldn't help but notice the other two females cringe just as much as she did when the pup pulled her hands away from her ear and proudly displayed the fact that she had put it in without any help. With a slight shake of her head, Takhal looked up at the other two females with more than a little concern.

"_Ooman's are very strange creatures!"_ Kre'Gel said quietly.

"_At least you didn't have to wake up with this thing sleeping on top of you as I did!"_ Ne'Tahl protested in a soft growl.

"_Well she seems to like you. So she shouldn't be deliberately trying to disgust you with things like that, right?"_ Kre'Gel asked.

Ne'Tahl gave a noncommittal grunt as she thought about how the pup had been afraid to have the lights off. She took the pup and left the bathing pool to dry off. As she donned her own clothing, she watched the pup to make sure that the pup was putting the clothes on correctly. Once they were all dressed, Ne'Tahl picked up the tiny ooman and once again placed the pup on her hip as she made her way through the ship. The small group ran into the exact hunter Ne'Tahl was looking for outside the training room.

_**Author's Notes: Please, **_**please**_** feed the Plot Demons by leaving a review, they serve as inspiration, and they let me know how well or poorly I am doing. I do respond to every signed review!**_


	8. Chapter 8

Who I am 8

"_We want to see the recording of what happened to the pup."_ Ne'Tahl demanded insistently as soon as she spotted Chakak.

Chakak merely bowed his head and removed his battle mask before handing it to Kre'Gel. There was no way that he was going to deny such knowledge from those who were now caring for the pup he'd rescued. Silence reigned as Kre'Gel watched the recording. Then, the female removed the mask and offered it to Takhal with shaking hands. When Takhal finally removed the mask and offered it to Ne'Tahl, she too was shaking with barely suppressed rage.

Ne'Tahl took the mask in her left hand and passed the pup to Takhal with her right. As she donned the smaller battle mask, she saw that the recording was already loaded and ready to play. She activated the recording and steadied herself as she prepared to watch the recording in full.

It was a narrow alley that was positioned just far enough away from the many streetlights that it was fairly dark within. Dark enough, in fact that he and his crew could easily hide within its darkened depths without fear of detection, but close enough to the street to react instantly to grab an unsuspecting, or even a suspecting target. All they had to do now was wait for someone to be unlucky enough to come along.

Leroy grinned excitedly in anticipation of what was to come this night. Tonight was the night that his little gang would begin making the biggest name for themselves. 'The Perps' would become more notorious and feared than even the Crips or the Bloods. They were going to make sure they had the rep as the absolute meanest gang in existence. By the time they were done, all of the local gangs would fear messing with them. Looking at each of his five homies, he knew that they would be down for anything he told them to do. That was just how he wanted it.

"There won't be a bitch alive dat ain't gonna give up dat ass to us! Cause we gonna take it, an make the bitch beg for more before we kill her." Leroy exclaimed as he brandished a gun.

"So if we catch a bitch tonight?" One of them asked.

"We gonna fuck the bitch till she _bleeds!_ Then we gonna kill her, an take every damn thing she got!" Leroy interrupted with a malicious grin.

In the darkened alley, six voices began snickering and laughing with sinister intent. So loaded on crack, that any morals they might have had were nonexistent, the six young men were all too eager and couldn't wait to get their hands on a victim; preferably a female victim.

When the excited chatter of a young girl reached their ears, all six men went silent as they bared their teeth in anticipation. As soon as Leroy moved to stick his nine-millimeter pistol in the man's face, the other five had immediately moved to surround the three people. The woman gasped and the man looked up, straight into the barrel of the gun. Leroy nearly laughed at the terrified expression on their faces.

"Look Guys, whatever you're after; we don't have it. I... I'm just a P.E. coach for an elementary school, I don't make much." The man said quickly.

"Shut the fuck up and get n the alley bitch! You don' know _what_ we want!" Leroy snarled angrily. This fucker was a dead sumbitch; he just didn't know it yet. '_Then again, he just might get to watch while they fucked his two bitches senseless before killing all of them. Yeah, that would be really fucked up.'_ Leroy thought with a satisfied snarl.

As they moved into the alley, the man pulled out his wallet, took his wife's purse, and held them out to the men. "Here, look. Take 'em, okay? Just let us go. We don't honestly have anything else. Even our damned car broke down on us." The man said convincingly.

The man obviously didn't know who he was dealing with. He had no intention of letting him go, and damned sure not alive! This fucker was gonna die and fast! Leroy snarled as he put every bit of crack-fueled strength he had into smashing the bastard in the side of his head. There was a very satisfying and sickening crunch of breaking bone as the butt of his pistol slammed into the man's temple. An eerie mix of blood and brains was pouring from the man's head before he even hit the ground.

The woman lunged down to try to help the man that had just been killed. "Oh my God! _You killed him_!" She screamed.

Leroy was sure that the bitch was right, and the bastard was dead, but he couldn't let her keep screaming like that because then they couldn't keep on having their fun. His hand tightened on his pistol, and he meant to threaten the bitch, but the gun went off right as a large truck backfired as it went down the street. He hadn't meant to kill the bitch before he and his homies got a chance to tap that nice lookin ass of hers, but now she was already dead. His nine-millimeter hollow points had blown her head all over the goddamned alley!

Several seconds passed in silence as Leroy fumed over the loss of a good fuck. Then he realized that the was still the girl left, and even though they were gonna kill her before they got done, there was nothing the little bitch could do to stop them from fucking the shit out of her before they did.

"Yo, homies! Looks like dis lil bitch gone have ta be a piece of ass afore we cap her!" Leroy told the five men who were with him as he shoved the pistol in the back of his pants, and pulled out a switchblade knife.

"Yo G! She gonna be just as dead as her parents!" Another added with a laugh.

Amanda was already backing away from the mean strangers that she knew just _had_ to be boogeymen in fear as tears began falling down her face. As they started towards her, she started shaking her head in terror, sure that they were going to kill her too.

"Please... please don't hurt me." She begged in fear as the tears ran down her face.

Her fear instantly became stark terror as five of the men grabbed her and pinned her against the dirty wall of the dark alley. Her soft pleas and sobs were silenced as one of them covered her mouth with a filthy hand. Crying and shaking in fear, she was forced to watch as the man who had killed her mommy and daddy started by cutting off her shoes.

Leroy couldn't help the smirk as he cut the socks off the girl. "Damn, dis bitch think she scared now, wait till she gets a look at our dicks that we gonna shove up her cunt!" Leroy bragged maliciously.

"Nah, man! That little bitch gonna get _horny_ when she sees all the dick she gonna get tonight!" One of his buddies laughed.

When the beautiful green dress that her mommy had picked out for her was cut and torn from her body, Amanda started crying harder and struggling more. She knew she had to get away from these men, but they were holding her so tight that they were hurting her arms. Then the really mean man cut her undies off. She could feel that sharp knife cutting her skin just a little every time he cut a piece of her clothes, and there was nothing she could do to stop them.

That was when the man in front of her put up his knife. Amanda thought that he might let her go then, but she was wrong.

"See this big fat dick I got? I'm gonna shove it up that cunt of yours so hard you'll get ripped in half!" Leroy bragged as he started unzipping his pants.

"What we gonna do after we fuck her out G?" Someone asked eagerly.

"I'm gonna shove my pistol in her ass and leave it there while I cut her flat assed tits off and stick em in her mouth before I pistol fuck her ass and cap her! I'm gonna blow her ass right out the top of her head!" Leroy laughed as he stepped closer to the terrified girl.

"Look here 'lil bitch; this is what you got coming!" Leroy said as he pulled out his already hardening cock.

Ne'Tahl took a shuddering breath, and removed the borrowed mask with hands that shook from the amount of pure deadly rage she felt. None of what she'd been told had prepared her for such dishonorable acts of pure callous and brutal cowardice. She had watched through to the end, and even seeing how the oomans had been killed, did nothing to cool the intense burning rage she felt

Ne'Tahl then began to understand why the pup didn't fear them. In the pup's eyes, the Yautja had saved her from a fate that would have been worse than death as well as from death itself. They had become her saviors, her guardians, her protectors, and avengers. Then she recalled her own reaction to the pup's fear the previous night, and knew that she had only provided further proof to the pup that she was perfectly safe while she was among them.

"_I only wish that you had captured them so I could kill them as slowly as they deserved."_ Ne'Tahl growled as she handed the mask back to Chakak.

"_I can't undo what I've already done, but I did return to that place last night and take a single skull. I do not claim it as a trophy, nor did I intend it that way. I took the skull for a good reason. Even if she is to be killed by decision of the Matriarch, the pup deserves to have at least something to prove that the dishonorable deaths of her bearer and sire were avenged. The Honored Warrior Mektar has agreed to prepare it for the pup. I asked him because there are few who can match his skill at preserving trophies."_ Chakak replied quietly.

Takhal looked at the young hunter sharply. _"Why would you do such a thing for an ooman pup?"_

"_Because I would have appreciated such a thing when my own bearer was killed in much the same fashion. To this day, I do not know if her death at the hands of a dishonorable coward has ever been avenged."_ Chakak replied in quiet anger.

Suddenly, both of the male's shoulders were grabbed. Each by a different female as both Takhal and Ne'Tahl shook one out of respect for the hunter's actions on the pup's behalf.

"_It doesn't matter whether I like the ooman or not. Even though I do not believe it deserves a place among us, you still did well by saving her, and avenging the deaths of her clan. You have a lot of honor in you, Chakak, and I for one, will be keeping an eye on you in the future."_ Takhal said boldly before she removed her hand from the hunter's shoulder.

"_Takhal is right. There is a lot of honor in your heart, and you are becoming a strong hunter as well. She won't be the only one watching you in the future."_ Ne'Tahl stated in a soft growl that had nothing to do with the anger that still coursed through her veins.

Chakak felt his chest swell with a mixture of pride and awe as he watched the three females enter the training room with the ooman pup in hand. Females who hunted were somewhat common, but females that actively hunted as much as the four on board were few and far between. Such females were notorious for only seeking out _only_ the strongest and most skilled hunters available when it was time to mate. For not one, but _two_ of them to bluntly tell him that they would be watching him was staggering. He knew that it wasn't easy to catch the eye of a female, but once a hunter had done so, it wasn't easy to lose that attention either. Every success would become known to them, and by the same token, every failure would also become known to them. It was exactly the kind of thing that could stir the soul, but at the same time, it brought concerns and worries of another nature as well. He knew that he would have to train long and hard if he wanted to stay in the good graces of such powerful and skilled females. He was about to follow them into the training room, when he realized that they had seen his methods and techniques of dispatching the ooman Bad Bloods.

'_They've seen any and every mistake I might have made!'_ Chakak realized in dismay. He quickly loaded the recording that the females had requested to see, and after carefully setting his emotions aside, which wasn't easy at all. He watched closely to see what he might have done wrong. '_There! The smart disk! My aim was too high! It should have been lower so I could have claimed the trophies from those kills! I'll need to work on my skills with a thrown weapon.'_ He thought after watching the recording again. Knowing what he now needed to work on, in order to keep the attention of at least two prominent females positive, Chakak entered the training room intent on improving his skills.

_**Author's Notes: Please, **_**please**_** feed the Plot Demons by leaving a review, they serve as inspiration, and they let me know how well or poorly I am doing. I do respond to every signed review!**_


	9. Chapter 9

Who I am 9

Amanda stared with disbelieving eyes at the two who were fighting on the stage looking thing. Ne'Tahl was roaring like she was really mad, and Takhal was doing the same thing. They were wrestling and throwing each other around. She thought that they were friends. So why were they trying to hurt each other? Tears welled in her eyes as Ne'Tahl forced the slightly smaller female to the floor, before getting her in a chokehold. Just as she was about to start crying that her friend was going to get hurt, Takhal slapped the floor hard and loud. Then Ne'Tahl actually helped her up before they faced off again.

A soft whimper escaped from Amanda's throat as she watched the two collide with a thunderous roar and a crash of armor. The noise was so loud that Amanda blinked because of it. Then, it happened so fast that Amanda wasn't sure what happened but Ne'Tahl was on the floor, and she was the one who slapped it loudly. Confusion filled her mind as Takhal helped Ne'Tahl to her feet. If they were fighting, then why would they help each other?

The strange fighting continued for a while, and Amanda didn't understand any of it. Every time one of them would get pinned to the floor, they would slap it loudly and get helped to her feet by the other. Then, to her horror, there were a pair of long sharp knives sticking out of those things on one of their arms. She recognized them as the same kind of knives that had been used to kill that really mean stranger who had killed her mommy and daddy. She was so scared that one of them was going to be hurt or killed that she couldn't even speak to ask them to stop.

Kre'Gel was working with the weight machines to build up and maintain her strength, when a glance at the ooman pup showed an expression of what she thought was fear. Stopping her workout, she went over to where the pup was sitting and watching the two females spar. Then she caught a whiff of the scent of fear rising from the pup, which spiked when Takhal was pinned to the floor of the training ring.

"Why are they fighting?"

The fear-filled voice of the ooman was full of concern. "They not fight. They... help to get better fighting. They not true fight. Only fight to learn." Kre'Gel replied wondering how she would teach the young ooman when she couldn't really speak the language properly.

"_How is the pup doing? She smells frightened now, when she did not last night; why?"_ A male voice behind Kre'Gel spoke up.

"_I think she fears that Ne'Tahl or Takhal will be killed in training... Elder."_ Kre'Gel answered while turning to see the Ship's Elder standing behind her.

Ta Khan nodded before glancing at the ooman pup. _"Not all Oomans are fond of combat or hunting. Believe it or not, but there are many who have never used or even touched a weapon of any kind. I have studied them for many years since I became an Honored Warrior, and they can still surprise me. Females who have never touched a weapon, who do not know the first thing about fighting, and who have even become physically ill at the sight of ooman blood can suddenly become extremely dangerous to defend their pup. Oomans can be like us in so many ways, but they are also very different as well. Some of them value honor and respect, not as we do, but they still value those qualities. Others care nothing for honor, have no respect, and value nothing but themselves. Those who were going to kill this pup were of that type. For now, I'll have the pup with me so I can explain this to her, and begin teaching the pup our language. Somehow, I have the feeling that she will need it."_

Ta Khan was about to say more when the subject of the discussion suddenly got to her feet to head to the marked off combat training circle. Almost casually, Ta Khan reached out and pulled the pup back to him, and turned the ooman to face him.

"Relax. They do not fight. They practice to become better at fighting. There are rules to this practice. Look." Ta Khan told the ooman before turning her around to make sure she saw the two sparing females. "When one of them knows that she is beaten, she slaps the floor. That tells the other that the round is over, and they try again. It is how fighting is learned. They are both Honored Warriors, and they respect each other, so they practice together to help the other learn. It is our way. Come, I will begin to teach you our language, so you can understand us."

Amanda watched like she was told, and saw that it was true. She calmed down and began breathing easier once she knew that her friends weren't going to hurt each other. She then turned and followed the Shimmer Monster that she remembered from last night. The big Shimmer Monster led her over to a group of chairs lined against one wall of the huge room. She saw him sit down and motion for her to come closer, once she did; he picked her up and sat her in a chair beside him.

Learning how to talk like a Shimmer Monster was tough, but it was fun. Thinking that it was like a game, Amanda was learning how to growl just like one of them. The part that was the hardest at first was duplicating the clicking sound they made. She didn't have any mandibles with tusks that could make those sounds like they did, but then she learned that she could make almost the same sound by clacking her teeth together. The Shimmer Monster, kept asking her to repeat the sounds, along with what those sounds meant. They were mostly simple words, like yes, no, good, bad, stay, come, hungry, thirsty, water, bath, bathroom, cold, hot, sleepy, more, sick, hurt, and tired.

The game of learning the new word sounds went on for a long time, and before she knew it, Amanda was getting hungry again. She wanted something to eat, but she also didn't want to stop learning how to talk like the Shimmer Monsters did. She hadn't noticed the Ne'Tahl and Takhal had finished sparring, and that both females were observing her instructions in their language. As much as she wanted to keep learning, the Shimmer Monster who was teaching her called a halt as soon as her stomach growled.

"We will stop now because you need to eat." Ta Khan said after hearing the girl's stomach gurgle in complaint.

"But I want to learn more. I wanna be able to growl like you do." Amanda pouted.

"Pup not argue with Elder! Bad pup!" Takhal snapped in an angry tone.

"_Easy Takhal. Relax, the ooman is merely eager to learn our language, and she'll have to do that, before she can learn our ways. This is good though. It tells me that she will not think of us as monsters the way other oomans do. She is not frightened of us, and because of this, we can learn more about her in specific, and about oomans in general."_ Ta Khan stated with a clicking laugh.

"_The pup must still learn proper respect, Elder."_ Takhal stated firmly.

"_That is true, but how can she respect us if she can't understand us? She has been hungry for a while now, but has ignored that hunger so that she could continue learning our speech. It speaks well of her discipline and self control that she would put aside her hunger to continue a lesson."_ Ta Khan lectured.

"_The pup is only six, so, I don't think she has any self-control as yet. She most likely thinks of this as another of her games. My guess is that she just doesn't want to stop playing."_ Ne'Tahl chimed in.

"_What game has she played, and when did this happen? She hasn't even been aboard this ship for very long."_ Ta Khan asked intently.

Takhal clicked in amusement as Ne'Tahl growled in irritation. _"When we went to bathe the pup to remove the dried gel, she blatantly challenged the two of us to catch her in the bathing pool. She used the water to her advantage and moved in it quite easily. She avoided both of us for quite some time before I finally caught her while she was throwing water in Ne'Tahl's face. She had done the same to me many times. She thought of the entire challenge as a game, and wanted to play again with her and I trying to catch Ne'Tahl."_ Takhal replied.

"_You say she's only six! This pup is much younger than I thought, and she avoided both of you? At the same time?"_ Ta Khan demanded in surprise.

"_We couldn't _see_ the little C'jit! Every pauk-de time she surfaced she threw water in our faces to cover her escape!"_ Ne'Tahl exclaimed bitterly just thinking about the sound defeat she'd been handed.

Ta Khan rocked back in his chair clicking loudly as his laughter rolled forth. He reached over and plucked the small ooman out of the chair next to him so he could place her in his lap. _"She's done very well for being so young. Most ooman pups are terrified by the mere sight of us, but she isn't. She's also eager to learn from us, and this is good, because it demonstrates that she might be able to live among us, even if she won't be strong enough to become a hunter."_

"_What would become of the pup then? Will she be some sort of glorified pet?"_ Takhal demanded in irritation.

"_That is something I can't answer. Whatever this pup's fate may be; it lies within the capable claws of our Clan Matriarch and those of the Gods. Our task now is to simply do what we can to prepare her for the possibility of living among us. If she has the strength, and the intelligence to learn our ways, then it might be possible. Otherwise…"_ Ta Khan said before he trailed off.

"_Otherwise the pup would be killed!"_ Ne'Tahl finished in anger.

"_Exactly, and that could well be considered a failure on our part for not teaching her properly."_ Ta Khan finished seriously.

"_I will admit that I wasn't too pleased to have this ooman pup among us, Elder. I am still not pleased by her presence, but I have no wish for her to die simply because her bearer and sire were killed by bad bloods who had no honor."_ Ne'Tahl replied sourly.

"_I think Ne'Tahl is right. I don't want the ooman among us, but I don't think the pup deserves to die because of what someone else has done. It is as she told me before; there is only dishonor for us if we allow this pup to die."_ Takhal said glumly.

"_Exactly! That is why we will need to teach her everything we can, before we return to Yaut. That is why I am willing to tolerate this disobedience. As long as she only disobeys in order to learn from us, then she will not be corrected, because the learning just might serve to prolong her life."_ Ta Khan stated firmly.

"_Is the pup's situation truly that serious?"_ Kre'Gel asked suddenly.

"_Yes it is. I know of a very few occasions that oomans have been tolerated among our kind, but it is extremely rare, and always have those oomans been great warriors among their kind. Never before has a mere pup been considered. This situation is an unknown. The circumstances are strange enough that all of Yaut, all of the other clans might very well learn of what we do in this case. I am not fool enough to think that I am so experienced as to make such a decision, which is why I am placing it in the claws of our Matriarch."_ Ta Khan said as he stood up with the ooman pup in his arms. _"Take her and give her something to eat, if she wants to learn more later, then I will teach her."_ He said as he held the small ooman out.

Ne'Tahl reached out, took the small ooman and placed the pup securely and comfortably on her hip, before looking back up at the ship's Elder. _"I had no idea that this was such a serious issue."_

"_At first, neither did I. It was only after I thought about it, that I realized some of the potential repercussions."_ Ta Khan said heavily.

She knew from the growling sounds, that the Shimmer Monsters were talking, and her mommy had taught her that she was never to interrupt or bother adults while they were talking. When Ne'Tahl turned to go somewhere, she knew that they had finished talking, and that she could now find out what she wanted to know.

"Ta Can? Can Ne'Tahl be my new mommy now? _Pwease_?"

Four Yautja, three females and the older male included froze in total shock at the unexpected question from the pup who was cradled against Ne'Tahl's side.

"_Did that pup just ask what I _think_ it did?"_ Takhal demanded in disbelief.

As the other three Yautja stared at both her and the ooman she held, Ne'Tahl hung her head in seeming humiliation. _"Elder, I _swear_ that I have done nothing to cause the pup to request such a thing!"_

"_It makes no difference if you have or haven't. Her request will also need to be considered by the Matriarch, along with whether or not she remains among us."_ Ta Khan instructed heavily.

"_This just keeps getting more, and more complicated!"_ He muttered thoughtfully.

"We will need to wait and let the clan Matriarch decide that Little One. Until that happens, you will stay with one of the females at all times, so they can watch over you, protect you, and teach you. Understand?" Ta Khan asked while looking at the small ooman.

Amanda nodded her head a little glumly in answer because while she wasn't very happy with part of the response, there _was_ a part of it that did make her happy. She was about to say something when her stomach spoke first.

"No more questions now. It is time for you to eat. Ne'Tahl will take you to the dinning hall where you _will_ eat! And you will _not_ ask any more questions that do not have to do with food until you are finished eating. Is that understood?" Ta Khan instructed sternly.

As soon as the pup nodded her head with a wide eyed and serious look on her face, Ne'Tahl headed for the ship's dinning hall.

_**Author's Notes: Please, **_**please**_** feed the Plot Demons by leaving a review, they serve as inspiration, and they let me know how well or poorly I am doing. I do respond to every signed review!**_


	10. Chapter 10

Who I am 10

Just like the first time the pup had been fed the night before, the hall was empty. Ne'Tahl chose to occupy the nearest table since the place was empty and she could have her pick.

"_Stay_." She instructed as she placed the ooman pup down on the table and turned towards the food locker to select some food.

"_Yes, Ne'Tahl._" Amanda answered as she carefully duplicated the sounds she had been taught.

"_At least she can understand basic instructions from you, now. That's more than could be said for last night._" Kre'Gel observed.

"_True and I'm hoping that perhaps tonight she won't be so terrified._" Ne'Tahl replied.

"_When has that fearless little C'jit ever been terrified? Not while I've seen her!_" Takhal retorted irritably.

"_I've seen her fearful enough that she was about to try to interfere in your sparring match earlier. She was afraid that one of you would be injured._" Kre'Gel supplied quietly.

"_She was? That's almost as strange as her being afraid once the lights were turned off and she simply couldn't see anything._" Ne'Tahl added with some confusion.

"_Had you just turned them off or had they been shut down for a while?_" Kre'Gel asked quickly.

"_They had been on for some time, but the instant I turned them off she became afraid, and started crying for her bearer. I leaned over the edge of my bed to see if I could comfort her with a stroke or two. That only frightened her more, and she was staring straight up. I turned on the lights, and checked the room, but there was nothing there. With the lights on she began to calm down again, so I turned them back off. As soon as I did, she began to reek of fear. That's when I noticed that she wasn't looking at anything. Just staring straight ahead. I waved my hand in front of her face, but she couldn't see it."_ Ne'Tahl explained.

"_I've heard that oomans see a different portion of the spectrum from a Yautja, but I never realized that we would be able to see when they can't._" Kre'Gel said lightly.

"_Believe it! I witnessed the proof for myself last night. I could see just fine, but she couldn't see my finger even when I touched her nostrils. The crying; I understand, but if I hadn't known that she could see well enough to follow Chakak back to the ship, I would have sworn she was blind._" Ne'Tahl exclaimed as turned back to the food locker and began removing a couple of portions of food for herself and the ooman pup.

"_Well we all know that she isn't blind! Not after the way she continuously avoided us in the bathing pool. She had to be able to see quite well to pull that off!_" Takhal stated with a derisive snort as she got her own portion of food.

"_If the Matriarch decides to accept her, then I think I'll be keeping an eye on her. She just might make things very interesting around the Clan compound._" Kre'Gel remarked as she grabbed the first pouch of food that caught her eye.

When the three Yautja females took their seats at the table, Ne'Tahl passed a small portion of food to the ooman pup. Takhal snorted in amusement when Amanda immediately plopped the strip of dried meat into her bowl of water.

"_What is that weird little ooman doing now?"_ Kre'Gel demanded curiously while staring at the meat that had been given to the ooman pup.

"_That's something she did at first meal this morning. Soaking the meat like that softens it up and restores a lot of the flavor. It still isn't as good as fresh meat, but it tastes a lot better than standard stores. The ooman showed Ne'Tahl, and she showed me. Now you know about this as well. It's a little trick that I will be _sure_ to remember on the next provision trip!"_ Takhal explained smugly.

"_I noticed her having some difficulty eating her meat this morning, but then she put it in her water while she ate her mash. She didn't have the strength in her jaws to eat the dried meat. But after it had soaked for a while, she had no problem with it. It got me curious, so I broke off a piece and tried it. After learning what this little pup has shown me, I will _never_ eat standard dried meat rations again!"_ Ne'Tahl said firmly as she placed her own strips of dried meat in a container of water.

Amanda had turned her attention to the bowl that was full of the same brown stuff that she'd been given the night before. She still didn't know what the stuff was called, but at that particular moment, she didn't really care. The food that these Shimmer Monsters were giving her to eat was good. She knew the Shimmer Monsters were talking, but she didn't know what they were talking about, since she still couldn't understand them. That was okay though, because they were going to teach her how to talk and growl like they did.

"Ne'Tahl, I need a go _bathroom_." Amanda said after she finished the stuff in the bowl and turned to the Shimmer Monster that she'd spent the night with. She wanted to show them that she was going to be a big girl by using one of the words that she'd been taught a little while ago.

Ne'Tahl pointed out where the waste closet was, and watched curiously as the little ooman quickly made her way inside. She returned her attention to the conversation that was taking place around her, but noted that the Ship's Elder entered the dinning hall.

"_Where is the ooman_?" Ta Khan asked as he sat down with a fairly large bowl of S'pke.

"_She needed to use the waste_…" Kre'Gel began when she was cut off by a loud shriek that emerged from the waste closet.

Ne'Tahl started laughing loudly as the others looked at her strangely.

"_Aren't you at least going to check on her_?" Takhal demanded instantly.

"_No, I don't need to. The cleaning system frightens her for some reason. That was the cause of that noi_…" Ne'Tahl started to reply when she was cut off by a _much_ louder scream that easily pierced the air of the dinning hall.

A moment later all of the Yautja at the table turned to gape at the waste closet as the small ooman pup emerged from the room with an obviously irritated expression on her face.

"I hate that _bathroom_!" Amanda exclaimed angrily as she wiped a few tears from her eyes. Even though she had _known_ that the jets of water and air had been coming, she still hadn't been exactly _ready_ for them, and they had still scared her when they'd hit. It was certainly _not_ the kind of bathroom that she'd been taught to use. She was so distraught from her terrifying experience that she didn't even think about what she was doing as she arrived at the table, climbed up Ne'Tahl's leg, then used the female's mesh suit, and arm so that she could get back on the table to finish eating.

Even as she resumed eating, Amanda felt the tears as they ran down her cheeks. She missed her mommy and daddy. She missed her home, her dolls, her toys, her room full of things that she was familiar with, and her favorite foods, but at that moment she _really_ missed a potty that _wasn't_ scary.

Ta Khan started laughing heartily when the little ooman pup plopped herself down and began chewing on a piece of meat that she grabbed from her cup while Ne'Tahl stared at the little ooman in disbelief.

"_What's so funny about a pup who positively _stinks_ of fear_?" Ne'Tahl growled angrily as she glared at the Ship's Elder.

"_You're right, she does, and I mean no disrespect, but seeing an ooman who is more afraid of the waste closet than she is of climbing all over one of the most aggressive and dangerous female's on this ship is _very_ funny_!" Ta Khan answered still laughing.

"_You have to admit that the situation is humorous, Ne'Tahl._" Takhal said as she and Kre'Gel started laughing as well.

"_Perhaps it should be, but I don't find it to be funny at all! This pup should be with her bearer, and I think it's disgraceful that her own kind can't even be trusted to care for a pup as young as she is!_" Ne'Tahl snapped sourly.

Amanda, who happened to be the subject of the discussion wasn't paying the slightest bit of attention to a conversation that she couldn't understand. Besides, she'd already been taught by her mommy and daddy that she wasn't supposed to interrupt adults when they were talking. Instead, she finished eating while the Shimmer Monsters were talking. Then, once she was full, she let out a quiet yawn before climbing off the table and into Ne'Tahl's lap to sleep.

Ta Khan shook his head sadly as he looked over at the small little ooman pup that was quickly falling asleep in Ne'Tahl's lap. A part of him wanted to pray to the Gods that Chakak had never encountered the incident that had caused the pup to be here, but then he realized what would have likely happened, and was slightly glad that things had turned out as the did. A pup was only young and innocent for such a very short while before they became more aware of themselves and the universe at large. It was that very same innocence that all Yautja Elders had come to both respect and revere in sentient beings. It didn't matter that many of those beings would become their prey once they matured, because while they were still young, all pups were very much the same. It was for that very reason that their highest and most inviolate laws held that pregnant or nursing females and pups were _never_ to be harmed during a hunt. They could be disarmed if they proved to be a serious threat, but they were _not_ to be injured while doing so! The mere fact that the life of a pup so young was still hanging in a strange sort of balance simply because of the actions of bad bloods weighed heavily upon him.

"_I will spread word around the ship that there is in fact an ooman pup on board, and that she is not to be harmed or threatened in any way. I don't know how much that will help with some of the more undisciplined Youngbloods that we have on board, but it should help some, in case she manages to leave your presence."_ Ta Khan informed Ne'Tahl.

"_That might not be a bad idea, Elder. The pup may be good at avoiding us in the bathing pool, but I'm not certain how she would fare at avoiding one of us on dry ground, and some of those males are simply too eager to kill something for their own good. She'd have no chance against them if she did wander away."_ Takhal said concerned.

"_Exactly, I realize that none of you are very pleased with the pup's presence, but I have no wish to see a mere pup injured or killed by a young fool with little or no discipline."_ Ta Khan said as he resumed eating.

Ne'Tahl looked down at the ooman pup who wasn't even as tall as her arm was long. Although she was definitely not pleased by the fact that she was the one now caring for this pup, she certainly couldn't deny that she felt honored by the pup's repeated requests to be permanently under her tutelage and care as well as becoming to be considered her own pup. After thinking about the circumstances for a few moments, she thought that she understood why the pup wanted her as a protector, although she rather thought that the pup couldn't possibly be aware of what she was really asking, but then, maybe the pup _did_ know what she was asking. The strange thing about it was that the only thing she had done was try to protect the pup as was expected of her. It was true that she might have over reacted to the pup's fear during the previous night. But reacting to a possible threat to a pup in her care was something that would have been expected of _anyone_ who was caring for a pup.

_**Author's Notes: Please, **_**please**_** feed the Plot Demons by leaving a review, they serve as inspiration, and they let me know how well or poorly I am doing. I do respond to every signed review!**_


	11. Chapter 11

Who I am 11

When the ship was sealed and filled with normal Yautja atmosphere for the journey to another world used for hunting large game, Ne'Tahl, and the other three female warriors immediately noticed that the ooman pup began to have some difficulty in breathing. The four females who had been trading off the role of caretaker for the pup while she was awake, had exhausted all of their medical knowledge in an effort to relieve the labored efforts that resulted from the ooman pup's attempts to simply breathe. They were at a complete loss as to how to help the pup, and Takhal went to the Ship's Elder as a last resort. Although she rather thought that it might be for the best if the pup were to die as a result of being unable to breathe, she was _not_ about to stain her honor by standing around and doing nothing to prevent such a senseless and honorless death.

"_Ta Khan, the ooman pup can not breathe for some reason. Is there anyone on board who might be considered a better medical specialist than Kre'Gel?"_ Takhal exclaimed as she approached the old male.

"_Yes there is. Take the pup to the medical bay, and I will send Da'Nan to see to the pup. If there is anyone on board who can help the little ooman, then he will be that one."_ Ta Khan replied as he turned to go speak to Da'Nan.

Takhal turned and headed to Ne'Tahl's quarters where the ooman pup was laying on the bed struggling to breathe. The ragged gasping of each panting breath was the only sound heard in the room. _"Ta Khan said that he is sending Da'Nan to the medical bay, and that we should take the pup there to meet him."_

Ne'Tahl quickly scooped the tiny ooman in her arms and immediately headed for the door. _"Then let us go now. I don't want to listen this pup fight just for a single life giving breath any longer."_ She growled irritably.

They reached the medical bay quickly, but as fast as they had moved, they still found Da'Nan waiting for them.

The somewhat older male wasn't nearly as muscular as most of the other males on board, but instead he had a somewhat thin muscle tone and wiry strength that was very deceiving in nature. Many who had sparred against the male had found to their dismay that although he wasn't quite as strong as they were, that he possessed a tremendous amount of endurance that was unmatched by any in the crew. That endurance allowed the male to continue fighting at the peak of his strength _long_ after his opponent began to tire.

"_Lay the pup on the table."_ He ordered over his shoulder as he prepared several medical scanners and began calibrating them. When he turned to begin treating the pup he froze and simply stared at what lay on the table before him. _"So the rumors were true. I didn't actually believe it until now, but it seems that there is an ooman pup on board. That explains the breathing problem. We have a much higher nitrogen content in our air then they do. It may take some time to construct a breathing unit that will allow the pup to slowly adjust to our atmosphere, but in the meantime, I can provide her with some additional oxygen to solve her immediate breathing difficulties."_ Da'Nan said quickly as he turned to the medical table and began sorting through the various materials to find some oxygen tubes that would do what was needed.

"_That's it?"_ Ne'Tahl yelled in surprise. _"We've been watching her struggle just to breathe for almost two days, and that's all she needs? How do you know that's what the problem is? You haven't even scanned her!"_

Da'Nan shot the much larger and taller female a smug look, and held a canister of oxygen near the ooman pup's face while the gas was being slowly released. As soon as the little ooman began receiving the oxygen that her body so desperately needed, her breathing began to deepen, and ever so slowly started to return to normal.

"_As I said, we have a much higher nitrogen content in our air than the ooman world. There have been a few oomans who have lived among us, although they are all long dead by now, and each of them have had this same problem in adjusting to our air."_ Da'Nan said quietly.

"_Are you saying that this is something that she can adapt to?"_ Takhal demanded seriously.

"_Of course it is. It's just going to be a matter of time, but her body can adjust to our atmosphere. While that happens she'll be somewhat short of breath for a while. She'll eventually be able to function normally in our environment. Although, if she ever goes back to breathing her native air, the higher oxygen content will either make her light headed, or give her the oxygen boost needed for extra endurance and strength, just as it does for us."_ Da'Nan replied as he continued to gather a few things. _"That canister of oxygen should last her until I can get one of the engineers to put something together for her. If it doesn't, just get her another one, and set it for a slow release, and make absolutely certain that she keeps it close to her face, so that she gets the full benefit of the oxygen she needs."_

Ne'Tahl watched the tiny ooman in her care very carefully for several seconds, and she quickly noted that Ahman'Dha was starting to breathe much more evenly. Apparently, Da'Nan knew what he was talking about in this particular case, although she had been highly skeptical because he hadn't even bothered with any type of scan. She would be the first to admit though, that after two days of exhausting every bit of medical knowledge she had while watching, and listening to this pup fight for breath, that it was a vast relief to see the little ooman pup breathing easily. She picked up the little ooman and gently cradled the small pup in the crook of her right arm, while making sure that the canister of oxygen was positioned to allow the pup to continue breathing easily.

Thinking back on the beginning of this problem, Ne'Tahl realized that she had known within minutes that the ship's air had been replaced. Though she herself had begun to breathe a little easier, the pup in her care had begun to struggle for each and every breath. She had quickly exhausted every bit of medical knowledge she possessed, but never would she have thought of such a simple thing as a difference in the air. Even as she recalled the difficulty the pup had just drawing breath, she also recalled something else.

'_Mommy.'_

That single word that had come from the ooman pup had been made in a tone that contained many things. Fear, trust, faith, and she would swear to both Lilka, and Cetanu himself that she had also heard a plea for help in that single word with which the pup had addressed her. She knew that the pup had been told that only the Matriarch could decide who would be the permanent caretaker for the pup, but that information had seemed to make little difference. Apparently the little pup had already decided that she was to be not simply her caretaker, or guardian, but a replacement _bearer_, because that was exactly how the pup had addressed her. It was the type of thing that had made her chest swell, and her heart pound with pride at being perceived as so worthy by one so young, even as her blood had run cold at the prospect of having an _ooman_ for a pup. The inner conflict and turmoil which stirred within her mind was something she just didn't understand. Why the ooman pup was so drawn to her was a mystery, and yet even as revoltingly ugly as the little thing was, there was still a part of her that was immensely proud of the fact that this strange little creature would place such unwavering faith in her, and her abilities.

Ne'Tahl looked down at the ooman pup who was already asleep while nestled securely in her right arm. She knew that the tiny thing hadn't been able to sleep while fighting for every breath and that now pure exhaustion had taken its toll. Why, the pup hadn't even been able to eat or drink anything because of the valiant struggle that had been waged for nearly two entire days. Suddenly, Ne'Tahl shook her head as she realized that no matter how much she might wish otherwise, there was no way that she could neglect any care that this pup might need in the near future.

Ne'Tahl made certain to grab two extra canisters of oxygen before she left the infirmary. She had no idea how long a single canister would last the pup, and she wasn't about to take any chances on the possibility of running out. She took the little pup to her room and began to put the little thing on her bed to sleep more comfortably. The instant she made to put the little pup down, the ooman grabbed her arm tightly, and held on.

"Pwease don't leave Mommy."

Those words had been slurred by both sleep and exhaustion, but Ne'Tahl still understood the meaning behind them. Her mandibles drooped in shock as she came to the rather stunning conclusion that this ooman pup wasn't _intentionally_ naming her as a bearer, but was naming her as such without even knowing that she was doing it! The mere idea that anyone or anything could possibly value her skills in such a way was staggering to her.

Ne'Tahl never had any intention of leaving the pup alone, not when the pup was in such an exhausted condition. Breathing issue aside, Ne'Tahl knew well that the pup would have been both half starved and completely dehydrated had it not been for what little medical treatment she and the other three females on board had known how to provide. Knowing that the little ooman was now reliant on a canister to provide her with life giving air, Ne'Tahl was _not_ about to neglect a mere pup's health by leaving her unattended. Although she could understand why the pup would not want to be left alone, she also felt somewhat insulted by the thought that she would so quickly and easily discard her obligations and responsibilities. No matter how physically repulsive she found the little creature, there was no way that she could abandon this pup right now.

She lay down amidst her furs, and almost immediately, the ooman pup crawled on top of her and assumed a prone position on her stomach. Ne'Tahl quickly repositioned the canister so that it would continue to assist the pup to breathe, and allowed herself to fall into a light sleep; knowing that she would instantly wake up if anything changed.

Amanda opened her eyes to a slightly sweet and strange smell that she wasn't familiar with. She knew at once where she was, but she wasn't sure how she'd gotten here. The last thing she remembered was that the Shimmer Monster that she wanted for a new Mommy had been trying to do something to help her breathe. She was aware of the slight rise and fall that her entire body made every time that Ne'Tahl took a breath. She really liked sleeping on Ne'Tahl's tummy, because Ne'Tahl was really warm, and she felt safe from any boogeyman that might come to get her. She didn't know what had been done so she could breathe, but she was just glad that she could.

Not yet fully awake, but not quite asleep either, Amanda's mind was wandering aimlessly. She lifted her right hand and began tracing a finger around one of the numerous spots that were a slightly darker color than most of the Shimmer Monster's body. She stopped for a second when the Shimmer Monster she was laying on started shaking all over. Not too sure what was going on, she continued tracing a few more spots on Ne'Tahl's body.

Ne'Tahl tried to stop the involuntary convulsions that tore through her from the pup's actions, but it was no use. When the little ooman kept on moving her finger around, she burst out laughing. _"Stop it; that tickles!"_ She said still laughing as she reached out and lifted the tiny ooman so she could face the little pup.

Amanda had no idea what Ne'Tahl had said, but she knew that the Shimmer Monster was laughing. When she thought about it, she figured out that she had been tickling the huge lady. "Sorry Ne'Tahl. I did-int mean to tickles you." She apologized while wrapping her arms over her stomach. "Pwease don't tickles me! I don't wanna be tickles."

"_Ne'Tahl… I am informing everyone on board that we'll be maintaining our own internal gravity while we hunt on this world. The planet's natural gravity would be harmful to the ooman pup since it's much higher than that of the ooman world."_ Ta Khan said as he caught the large female outside the dinning hall and entered with her.

"_That's good to know, Elder. I will go inform the other females of this as well."_ Ne'Tahl said as she grabbed a bottle of C'ntlip, and five cups along with a flask of naxa juice and headed for the exit.

Ta Khan stared at the large female in concern as she headed out with a full bottle of C'ntlip that was enough to fully intoxicate a pair of females. _"May I ask what you intend to do with that before you leave?"_

Ne'Tahl flared her mandibles in a smile. _"We females are having a little time for ourselves before we start trading off guardian shifts for the ooman pup. You don't need to be concerned about her. She is with us in the steam pool, and she is being properly cared for."_

The Elder felt a surge of lust run through him at the thought of four highly attractive, and very desirable females lounging around while covered in nothing more than a tantalizing sheen of moisture and steam. Then he realized that since none of the four were in season, merely entering that room while they were unclothed would be certain suicide, because all four females would readily cooperate to kill any unwelcome intruder. He shook his head as he struggled to regain some measure of self control. Then, he noticed that the female hadn't even bothered to stay long enough to see his reaction.

'_If they are planning to watch the pup in shifts, then that means they will also be hunting as well. Pauk! The scent of fresh blood, combined with the presence of a pup could very well put all four of them in a foul mood towards every male on the ship! At least the pup is being cared for.'_ The Elder thought ruefully before realizing something. _'If they are forced to hunt in rotating shifts rather than as opportunity allows, then they may welcome a chance to hunt at will. I will speak to them later about including me in their scheduling of some time with the ooman pup so she may continue to learn our language. I'm sure they would appreciate being relieved of the pup for a while.'_

Amanda was enjoying the hot pool of water that was even big enough for her to swim in. One of the fun things about it was that something made lots, and _lots_ of bubbles. There were thick clouds of steam that filled the whole room, and there was even a smaller pool of cooler water that she could get in when she got too hot which had happened a few times already. Gre'Cham, Takhal, and Kre'Gel were letting her play in the water as much as she wanted while they sat around and talked. What was _really_ fun though was that she was allowed to sit on the side of the pool so she could kick and splash as much as she wanted without getting in trouble, even when she splashed the Lady Shimmer Monsters! The only thing they didn't want her to do was splash them in the face.

Kre'Gel grunted in amusement as yet another wave of water crashed over her torso. The ooman pup certainly enjoyed the water; there was no denying that, but the amount of sheer _fun_ that the pup seemed to have involving a large amount of water was something to see. She shook her head in disbelief at just how much the ooman pup appeared to be enjoying herself with nothing more than water.

"_I think the Gods have made a mistake."_ Takhal muttered with a shake of her head.

"_What do you mean? What mistake could the Gods have made?"_ Gre'Cham asked curiously.

"_I think she should have been some type of aquatic creature instead of an ooman!"_ Takhal explained with a rueful snicker. _"She enjoys water _far_ too much _not_ to be some type of marine creature."_

Both of the other females began laughing at the joke, with Takhal soon joining them. The laughter only became more pronounced when the ooman pup plunged into the water with a large splash.

That was when the attention of all three females was drawn to the sound of the opening door as Ne'Tahl entered.

"_Hurry up and come in so we don't lose too much of the oxygen we've added to the room's atmosphere."_ Takhal instructed firmly.

"_You added oxygen to the air in the entire room? Why would you do that?"_ Ne'Tahl asked after the door slid shut behind her.

"_Ahman'Dha was unable to properly enjoy playing in the pools while encumbered by her breathing mask. It's not a full combat style mask, so she can't breathe under water with it, and she had a lot of trouble trying to swim with it on. So we filled the room with additional oxygen by using this planet's atmosphere to allow her some freedom from it, while at the same time forcing her to adjust to a slightly lower oxygen content in the air she breathes. There isn't as much as on the ooman world, but still more than our own atmosphere. She seems to be adapting just fine, although she does get short of breath easily, and has to rest frequently because of that. She's still enjoying herself…"_ Whatever else Kre'Gel had been about to say was cut short when the ooman pup in question surfaced and shook her head violently to get the water out of her eyes and hair.

"Not wet face!" Takhal snapped as she wiped away the water that had been slung by the girl's hair.

Amanda looked around to see who had spoken to her. "Sowwy Takhal. I didint mean too."

Takhal merely grunted as she acknowledged the ooman pup's apology, because she was more interested in the two bottles that Ne'Tahl had carried in with her. She watched as the other female shed her clothing, before getting in the heated pool.

As soon as she was seated in the hot soothing water, Ne'Tahl poured a cup of naxa juice for the ooman pup, and then poured a cup of C'ntlip for each of the females, herself included. Ahman'Dha accepted the cup of cold juice gratefully, and sipped at it while the Yautja enjoyed their liquor. It was immediately obvious that the pup was relishing the cold juice.

"_I think that was an excellent idea, Ne'Tahl."_ Kre'Gel stated as she sipped the beverage.

"_Well, I didn't want her asking us for C'ntlip, so I got her something to drink, so she wouldn't bother us for ours."_ Ne'Tahl said with a shrug.

Gre'Cham nodded her head with a smile. _"Brilliant thinking my friend."_

_**Author's Notes: Please, **_**please**_** feed the Plot Demons by leaving a review, they serve as inspiration, and they let me know how well or poorly I am doing. I do respond to every signed review!**_


	12. Chapter 12

Who I am 12

Ta Khan looked down at the ooman pup who was sleeping in his arms. This pup was definitely going to be an interesting one. Almost as soon as he had begun watching over her so that all of the females could hunt at will; this pup had shown an almost _hunger_ to learn what she could of the Yautja way of life. He had explained the respect that was required when speaking to another, and why everyone loved to hunt. Then he had told the pup of the hunting, and the trophies that were taken to prove skill. When she had asked what kind, so he'd shown her the communal trophies aboard the ship.

The old Yautja couldn't help but smile at the expression of pure awe on the pup's face. The wide eyes and open mouth told him more about how impressed she was than any words she might speak. The ooman pup, Ahman'Dha, had stared at each of the skulls for a long while, because every last one of them were larger than the pup was. That was when he'd explained about the skills necessary to hunt such ferocious creatures, and how such skills were obtained. The tiny pup in his arms had then asked, quite respectfully and seriously, if he would teach her how to do such things. The pup had then said that if she'd been able to do things like that, then maybe she could have stopped the boogeymen from killing her mommy and daddy.

Ta Khan knew that today would be the last day of hunting before the ship left this world and returned to Yaut. All four of the females were out hunting, although he wasn't sure if this ship would have the space to store the meat from their hunts. Since the ooman pup had been brought to the ship, the females had been absolutely _relentless_ in their hunting! They had _each_ procured more meat, skins, and furs than any five other hunters on board! He knew that the females were only acting on some of their instincts by ensuring that there was _more_ than enough meat to sustain both the Clan and the pup, but at the rate they were going, there wasn't going to be enough room on the ship to carry all the meat back to the Clan.

Ta Khan knew that it was because of the pup's presence on board that the Clan would be eating well in the near future. While almost all of the females hunted, few would hunt as actively as those on board. Right now, their instincts were driving them to provide for the pup who was now in their midst. He knew that none of them actually wanted the ooman on the ship, but they would _readily_ face down _any_ who dared to threaten the pup in their presence, and woe betide the male who was so foolish.

Ta Khan looked up as the four females entered with each of them dragging a _pair_ of large kills behind them. The creatures were as large as an ooman buffalo, and his mouth dropped open at the sight of eight carcasses that needed to be processed and stored. Suddenly instead of helping to deal with the creatures, all four of the females simply dropped their kills and left. The communal hall aboard the ship was more than large enough to hold the dead bodies for a while, but still… they should have remained to process the meat and hides.

The old Yautja was just starting to get angry over the fact that these bodies had basically been dumped here when the four females returned with three of them dragging two more carcasses while the fourth was dragging only one. Still… that meant there were now no less than _fifteen_ large creatures that needed to be skinned and cleaned. It would require the help of several more hunters to complete the task before the meat began to spoil. There was only one problem that now needed to be addressed.

"_You do realize that there isn't enough room to store all of this meat, don't you_?" Ta Khan asked irritably.

"_Of course I realize that Elder. We are simply tired of eating dried meat, and Ahman'Dha is also having trouble eating it_._ Take the stores of dried meat and stuff it in the engine room, then _we_ can eat fresh meat for the rest of the trip. I am looking forward to eating well and decently for a change!_" Takhal answered quickly.

Ta Khan shook his head as he donned his mask and summoned others to help process the meat. He couldn't deny that this had been the most _productive_ hunting mission in his lifetime, and he was absolutely_ certain_ that the presence of both the females and the pup had made it so.

The strength of those doing the work, and the various tools that they used meant that the processing of the meat was going quickly. Each carcass was strung up and quickly skinned by one hunter, while another hunter preserved the skin for use either as a hide or a fur. Several of the hunters were busy moving the dried meat out of the food lockers since that could be stored almost anywhere. The fresh meat from the kills was being refrigerated in its place. In less than an ooman hour most of the processing was completed. The only thing that remained to be done was dispose of the waste from the animals, and some parts of the digestive tract. The rest of the creatures would be used in some way, and that included the blood which was used to make broths of various strengths.

Amanda had woken up while the animals were still being skinned, and she stared with wide eyes at the large hunks of things that were hanging from the ceiling. She saw Ne'Tahl and the other lady Shimmer Monsters cutting up great big things that were even bigger than the cows her Aunt Rachel had. Gre'Cham finished what she was doing first and took some of the parts with her as she left. Amanda kept watching until everything was gone. She looked up at the Ta Khan who had been teaching her bunches of things, intending to ask what was going on, but before she could say anything a shadow fell over her.

"You eat now." Gre'Cham said firmly as she held a bowl out to the ooman pup.

Gre'Cham knew that the cuts were choice meats, and that they were delicacies, because of the vitamins and nutrients that were packed within those particular cuts of meat. She had taken pieces of kidney, liver, lungs, and even a small piece of the heart and prepared them for the pup. Grilled with a small amount of seasoning herbs along with some of the blood from the creature; the pieces of meat made a dish that was fit for any Elder or Matriarch on Yaut!

Amanda took the bowl even though she was a little surprised because they weren't in the cafeteria. The pieces of meat in the bowl weren't very big, but there was enough to snack on until it was time to eat. She had no idea what the meat was but it was very, _very_ good, and it wasn't anywhere _near_ as hard to bite into as the jerky that she'd been eating since she started living with these Shimmer Monsters. The small bowl of meat didn't last long even though she had to blow on a couple of the pieces to get them to cool of so she could eat them.

Ne'Tahl watched as Gre'Cham left to prepare some fresh cuts of meat for the ooman pup. She had seen what was being taken, and she silently agreed that the pup needed them, because there was no visible muscle development on the pup yet. That was something that would most certainly change if she had anything to say about it.

The ooman pup was sitting on the bed watching as Ne'Tahl packed her belongings together. All of her armor, weapons, and clothing were being carefully stored for transport back to her home. She knew that all over the ship, others were doing the same, just as those on the two ships that had accompanied them were also doing the same. Three ships, each assigned to gather meat from a single planet, and though they traveled together, they always landed separately to avoid disruption of the local wildlife… or in the case of Ahman'Dha's world, detection by the oomans. She could almost hear the various comments now. Her ship had been forced to wait while the other two hunted and filled their storage holds, but _this_ ship had been filled to bursting in_ much_ less than a tenth of the hunting time allotted. Communications of concern and surprise had come from the other two ships when the lift off signal had been sent. Upon learning that the ship was ready to leave because it was filled to capacity, the others had replied with astonishment.

Amanda knew from the way that Ne'Tahl was packing and doing other things that they were getting ready to go somewhere. She got down from the bed and used a piece of wall panel that was actually very reflective as a mirror to make a single long braid out of her hair. She started the braid at the top of her head and just kept going as she made the tightest braid she could until she got to the end of her hair.

Ahman'Dha was doing something strange to her hair while she packed her belongings. When the ooman pup finished, she was holding the end of that strange looking cord that she made of her own hair. Ne'Tahl tilted her head to her right as she looked at the ooman pup curiously. _'Why would she do something like that?'_

"Ne'Tahl… do you have something I can use to tie the end of my braid so it will stay? Ta Khan said that we will meet a bunches of more peoples when we land an I wanna look pretty." Amanda asked as she held out the end of her braid.

Ne'Tahl thought for a moment before handing the little pup a short strip of leather, which the pup promptly fastened on the end of the strange cord made of her hair. That was when she recalled that the strip of cloth she had removed from the pup's hair that first night had been cleaned, and was available to be used. She quickly got it out and offered it to Ahman'Dha who was now staring at a section of the wall.

Amanda recognized the ribbon as soon as she saw it. It was one of the ones her mommy had put in her hair before they went to go see the show. She couldn't help but think of her mommy and daddy as she put the ribbon in her hair at the base of her braid, right on the top of her head. She had to wipe tears from her eyes so that she could see her dim reflection in the metal wall. She could see that she didn't look as pretty as her mommy had always made her look when she needed to dress up, but she still looked nice.

Ne'Tahl watched as the pup tied the strip of cloth to her hair next to the scalp while staring at the wall again. That was when she noticed the scent of fresh grief coming from the little pup. She was through with her packing, so she lifted the pup into her arms and began to purr strongly, knowing that Ahman'Dha was now thinking about her parents again.

Amanda watched as _lots_ of Shimmer Monsters came to help unload a lot of stuff out of the ships. Skulls, horns, skins, furs, and especially a lot of packs of meat. It wasn't just the ship she'd been in, but two more as well. Finally, it was all done, and Kre'Gel came, picked her up, and took her to where all the Shimmer Monsters were gathering in a huge room. She was put down on the floor, with lots of them stretched out on either side of her. In front of her was a lady Shimmer Monster with grey in her thick strands of hair.

"I am told that your name is Ahman'Dha. Is this true?" The Clan Matriarch asked the ooman pup who was now to be judged for acceptance.

Amanda nodded her head with wide eyes because something told her that this was very serious. Even Ne'Tahl and Ta Khan were being quiet… and _they_ told all the others what to do! Then she remembered the words she had learned from Ta Khan.

"Sei." Amanda answered seriously.

Thwei-de Kv'var-de's eyes went wide in surprise when the ooman pup answered her question with a single word in Yautja.

"You speak our language?" The Clan Matriarch asked with a light smile.

"A little bit. Ta Khan teached me some words." Amanda said proudly. "I hadda try really, _really_ hard though."

The old female nodded to herself thoughtfully. That this ooman pup was willing to learn was a good sign. The question was; could she ever become anything other than a servant, slave, or some type of glorified pet? That was what this gathering had been called for… to find out.

"Do you know why you are here?" She asked plainly.

"I'm here a'cause I will finded out if I will be part of this Clan." Amanda replied.

"You realize that if you are not accepted, then you might well end up being hunted?" The Clan Matriarch asked.

Amanda was about to answer when she was grabbed by her braided pony tail and lifted up to face one of the Shimmer Monsters. She kicked and screamed, but he just wouldn't let her go. Then she got mad and decided that since he was going to pull her hair, she would pull _his_!

"Do you hear _that_ little ooman? I might be the one who gets to hunt you!" Hulij-bpe growled with a smirk as he pulled the little ooman up to his face to sneer at her.

Amanda didn't reply except to scream. Then, before anyone could say anything, she reached out and grabbed his hair and yanked… _hard_!

The sudden pain that flared from his tendrils caused Hulij-bpe to lose his grip on the ooman, but the ooman didn't let go. Instead _all_ of her weight was now being supported by a pair of very sensitive tendrils. The incredible pain knocked every ounce of strength from his body, and he fell to his knees. This caused the ooman to jerk on his tendrils as she came to a sudden stop, and that made his world go black as he fell into unconsciousness.

When the Shimmer Monster fell down, Amanda let go of his hair and rubbed her smarting head. Tears fell down her cheeks and she squeezed her eyes shut, but the pain just wouldn't go away. The shimmer Monster wasn't rubbing his head. He was just laying there, and that made her mad. She reached down and grabbed on of those thick strands of hair and pulled with everything she had. She was going to make _sure_ that he started hurting too!

Amanda had barely started to pull when the piece of hair came off in her hands. Thoroughly dissatisfied with that result, she grabbed another one and pulled until it too came off. She jumped on his back and began jumping up and down while yelling and rubbing her tender scalp. But none of that would make the pain go away, so she grabbed two more of those pieces of funny looking hair; one in each hand and pulled until those also came off. She alternated between jumping up and down on the Shimmer Monster's back, rubbing her head, screaming in frustration, and pulling his hair out. She kept doing this until there was no more hair to pull out. She sat down on the Shimmer Monster's back and cried because her head still hurt, and there was nothing she could do to make it stop.

All three of the females who had been there to see it, and Takhal especially, cringed as they watched what Ahman'Dha was doing to a Blooded Warrior. Takhal remember when she had pulled the pup's hair, and by Cetanu's swords, was she ever glad that this pup had not retaliated in such a fashion! The action that she was now a witness to… was so far beyond painful that she didn't even want to _imagine_ what it felt like! Then when the ooman pup finally sat down and cried while holding her head, the Clan's Matriarch stepped forward.

Guan R'ka stepped forward and lifted the ooman pup into her arms. If she had not witnessed such a thing with her own eyes, she would _never_ have believed that an unarmed ooman _pup_ could defeat a fully armored Warrior in hand to hand battle, but this one had just done _exactly_ that!

"Ahman'Dha has just achieved Nain-desintye-de! She bleeds from no wounds and yet her opponent lies unconscious and bleeding badly. This is an absolute victory gained by a _pup_ against an opponent who is _far_ stronger and larger than she is, with _much_ greater experience and training! Are there any here who will deny that her victory must have been inspired and granted by Cetanu himself?" Guan R'ka asked of the Clan as a whole.

Complete silence met her question; because there was no way that any of them could believe what had happened. She nodded her head and began to purr softly. What ever else might be said of this day in the future, it would _not_ be said that she did not provide the victor with a proper acceptance.

_**Author's Notes; What ever you do… do **_**not**_** pull that kid's hair! Also, please… **_**please**_** review… or else **_**I**_** will pull her hair and blame it on **_**you**_**!**_


	13. Chapter 13

Who I am 13

The Matriarch of the Black Mountain Clan looked at the unconscious male and shook her head. Granted his actions were both disrespectful and dishonorable in that he should have waited for a final decision before assaulting the ooman pup in such a manner. His actions were irrelevant now; the ooman pup had clearly and soundly defeated Hulij-bpe in single combat. What made it such an obvious victory though was _how_ the little ooman female pup had won. She had used _only_ what physical force had been used against her!

"_Hulij-bpe has dishonored himself. His impatience will now cost him. He is to be placed among the Clan servants where he will live out the remainder of his life. Any further dishonor on his part will be grounds for his execution. Honorable Mektar, it is well known among us that your skill at making and preserving trophies is far better than most. It would be appreciated if you would make the tendrils of the defeated into a belt that the victor may wear throughout her life. Make certain that the beads of prowess remain in place."_ The Clan Matriarch ordered casually.

Mektar began to chuckle while shaking his head.

"_You find this amusing for some reason… why?"_ The Clan Matriarch Guan R'ka asked interestedly.

"_This will not be the first trophy I have prepared for that pup… and yet somehow… I do not believe that it will be the last either."_ Mektar answered while still chuckling.

The Clan Matriarch signaled to a trio of servants to drag the unconscious body of Hulij-bpe back to the servants quarters. _"It has always been the right of the victor to claim that which belongs to the fallen. Hulij-bpe's belongings will be held in trust for the pup. She is now a member of this Clan, and she is to be treated as such. As a female she is not required to undertake the Chiva, but should she choose to do so, proper training will be provided to her. Is that understood?"_

Seeing that there was no one in the Clan who dissented, Guan R'ka resumed purring for the tiny female in her arms and nodded to the four females who had cared for the ooman pup during the hunting trip. She then also nodded to the Elder Ta Khan, knowing that the five Warriors would follow her as she turned and went to her own quarters. The ooman pup in her arms was still crying softly and holding the top of her head. Even though she most _certainly_ didn't want to, the Clan Matriarch could only imagine how painful it must have been to be hoisted into the air like that. As she entered the series of rooms that were hers, the Clan Matriarch went straight to her bed room. She placed the ooman pup on the bed and quickly retrieved a vial of pain blocker. That was then smoothed into the pup's hair.

Amanda's tears dried up and she quit crying after the Shimmer Monster put some stuff in her hair that made the hurting go away. Then the lady Shimmer Monster picked her up, walked into a living room, sat down, and put her in her lap. That was when she saw the ones that she knew sitting down as well.

Once the Clan Matriarch was seated in a common area instead of one that was reserved for official matters, Ne'Tahl knew that she'd be able to actually discuss things with her mother, rather than have instructions given to her that absolutely _had_ to be obeyed. Clearly, this was to be a much more informal meeting, although the speech used would have to be formal, since this was a matter involving the Black Mountain Clan as a whole. She couldn't help but wonder about everything that would be discussed.

Guan waited until everyone was seated, and as soon as they were, she stood back up and retrieved a platter that she placed seven cups on, along with a pitcher of chilled naxa juice, a pitcher of water, and one of C'ntlip. That was placed on a small table in the center of the room where it could be reached by everyone. She then resumed her seat with the ooman now cradled in her left arm. She immediately poured a cup of naxa juice and added a few drops of sleeping draught to it. She made sure that it wasn't enough to make the tiny ooman sleepy, just enough to calm her down. Then she handed it to Amanda, who sat quietly and sipped at it.

"_For ease of this discussion, we will speak our language instead of that of the little one. First though, I would like someone to tell me her name."_ Guan instructed easily.

"_Her name, Mother, is 'Tiny Growl', and she has just turned six years of age."_ Ne'Tahl answered while the others were pouring themselves cups of liquor.

"_Why do you not accept her own name that was given to her by her ooman mother?"_ Guan asked interestedly.

"_We do actually. That is what _she_ told us her name was."_ Kre'Gel replied while Ne'Tahl poured a cup of C'ntlip and handed it to her mother.

"_Am I to understand that this ooman pup has a _Yautja_ name?"_ Guan asked in surprise.

"_Yes, she does. Not only that, but she learns quickly as well. Granted, I have not had much free time to spend teaching her, but she has learned some basic words." _Ta Khan stated.

Guan nodded her head in understanding. _"Exactly how much of what has happened here this day has been explained to her?"_

"_Only that it would be you who decides what her fate is to be, and that is all that was said to her."_ Ta Khan answered easily.

"_Then she knows nothing of her acceptance within this Clan yet?"_

"_No Mother she does not… but there is something else you should know, and I know not if you will enjoy hearing this, but I do not enjoy saying it. Ahman'Dha has asked me to become her replacement Bearer. She has asked more than once, and she has even asked Elder Ta Khan that question."_ Ne'Tahl said sourly.

"_Are you telling me that if this pup's _honorable_ request is granted; that my first grandchild would be… be an _ooman_?"_ Guan demanded in surprise.

"_That is exactly what I am telling you. I will add that Ahman'Dha has a courage that goes _far_ beyond her small size. I must admit to you that this day was not her first victory against a Yautja Warrior."_ Ne'Tahl said as her mandibles tightened in irritation.

"_What other victories has she gained and how could she _possibly_ have achieved them?"_ Guan demanded in shock.

"_The morning after she followed the Young Blood Chakak back to the ship, she challenged both myself and Takhal to catch her in the bathing pool. She avoided us _both_ for a very long while! Takhal was the one to finally catch the little… _ooman._ That was when she proclaimed that it was a fun _game_, and that she wanted _me_ to try hiding in the pool, while she and Takhal tried to catch me."_ Ne'Tahl answered bitterly.

In all her time as a Warrior, and even during her time as the Matriarch of the Clan, she had _never_ heard of such a thing. Guan R'ka gaped at the tiny pup cradled in her left arm before looking up at her daughter.

"_You're telling me that _this_… this ooman _pup_ bested _you_ in a challenge… you a fully trained Warrior?"_ Guan demanded in stark disbelief.

"_Yes… she did! She might have considered it to be a game, but it was _still_ a challenge! One that had Takhal and I both angry_ _at the _ease_ with which the pup avoided us."_ Ne'Tahl said in a near growl.

"_I will freely admit that against only one of us, Ahman'Dha would have won her challenge without question… just as she has attained victory in combat this day."_ Takhal added plainly.

The Clan Matriarch looked down at the ooman pup nestled in the crook of her left arm Ahman'Dha was sitting quietly while slowly drinking the cup of juice and not trying to gain attention like other pups her size or age would. She was thoroughly surprised that such a well mannered and respectful pup could even exist. She thought about what she had learned as well as seen, and shook her head.

"_It is clear that Ahman'Dha's presence among us is desired by at least one of the Gods. Be it Lilka, or Cetanu, I know not. By what other method could one possibly explain how a mere _pup_ of an ooman has _twice_ bested a full grown Yautja Warrior? Not only is she to be accepted as one born to this Clan, but you my daughter will take the place of her bearer as she has asked."_ Guan stated firmly.

"_But mother! I do _not_ want to accept that pup as my own!"_ Ne'Tahl protested angrily. _"I find her to be _repulsive_!"_

"_Do you actually think I would choose to have an ooman pup as my _eldest_ grandchild? I like this no more than you do my daughter. She has triumphed in a situation where the challenge was one of strength, will, determination, and endurance of pain! She _bested_ a Blooded Yautja Warrior in a contest of _his_ choosing! We all know that Hulij-bpe was well named because there are many _females_ who will not spar with him. His physical strength is greater than most, and for a male his size is impressive, but he has _never_ bred, because no female will risk being crippled or killed during breeding with him."_ Guan stipulated just as angrily.

"_I think it was Cetanu."_ Kre'Gel said quietly.

"_What do you mean?"_ Ne'Tahl asked quickly.

"_I mean that I think it is Cetanu who is watching over her. Think about it, we know that oomans fear the sight of our faces, yet when Chakak revealed his face to her, she responded with affection. Then in the pool the next day. You were clearly irate enough to kill her after being bested by her, and it showed. Was she frightened by the flaring of your mandibles? No! She was not, instead she was actually _impressed_ by them, and she gave you a compliment! I even asked if Cetanu had granted his courage to the pup then. Now… she has bested yet another Warrior. She could easily have responded in the same fashion when Takhal did much the same thing, but she didn't… instead she merely complained, and demanded to know if Takhal wanted the pup to do the same to her. Do you think her acceptance among us would have been granted if she had done such a thing to Takhal on the ship? No, it wouldn't! She would have been removed from the ship and left to survive on her own among the ooman bad bloods."_ Kre'Gel said fervently.

"_You speak truth Kre'Gel. We know that the Gods do not usually concern themselves with the doings of this life, but they have obviously been involved in Ahman'Dha's. Let us hope that by accepting her, and granting her wish in a replacement bearer that the Gods are satisfied."_ Ta Khan said seriously.

"_I do not _want_ an ooman pup! I do not want to be burdened with _any_ pups as yet!"_ Ne'Tahl stated disgustedly.

"_It does not matter what you or even _I_ want at this point! Ahman'Dha has requested that you replace her bearer, and become her mother. You obviously do not want this, _I _do now want this either, but honor demands that such be done, and that is the end of the matter!"_ Guan said in a tone of finality.

Ne'Tahl flared her mandibles in silent rage. It was true that she had tended to the pup and even watched over her while providing the protection that was expected of her, but she did _not_ want that ooman as her _daughter_! The decision had been made though, and she would now have to live with the results. She didn't like that in the least. She looked over at Ahman'Dha who was nestled in her mother's arm and was apparently almost ready to fall asleep. That was when she noticed the far too rapid breathing of the pup.

"_Gre'Cham do you still have Ahman'Dha's breathing mask?"_ Ne'Tahl asked intently.

"_Yes, why?"_

"_Because she's not breathing well, she needs it."_ Ne'Tahl answered sourly.

"_That may be the reason Ahman'Dha has requested that you replace her mother; because even though you _obviously_ don't like her, you _still_ watch over her with an eye for details like this one."_ Gre'Cham said as she got up to place the breathing mask over the lower portion of Ahman'Dha's face.

"Thank you Gre'Cham." Amanda said tiredly before she laid her head against the breast armor and began to doze off in the arms of the Shimmer Monster where she knew she was safe.

Guan R'ka looked down at the ooman pup in her grasp, and noticed that the pup was falling asleep. She took the nearly empty cup of naxa juice from the pup's hand before setting it aside. _"Should she be falling asleep like this?"_

"_Yes, she usually does about this time. She tends to sleep for a short while not too long after the mid day meal."_ Kre'Gel stated.

"_Then we may content ourselves with each other's company until she awakens and can be told of the decisions regarding her."_ Guan R'ka said easily.


End file.
